New York, Mar 17 2011 6:10PM
United Nations officials today called for more resources to deal with the humanitarian crisis in Côte d'Ivoire, where hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced by the post-election violence and tens of thousands have been forced to flee across the border into Liberia.
"Additional funding is needed so that the magnitude and scale of this crisis can be dealt with," Ndolamb Ngokwey, the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Côte d'Ivoire, <"http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs//2011/110317_Guest.doc.htm">told reporters at UN Headquarters.
Côte d'Ivoire plunged into political uncertainty, with factional fighting and other forms of violence flaring up in Abidjan and the western region, since incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo refused to leave office after his UN-certified defeat by opposition leader Alassane Ouattara in last November's presidential election.
"What is very clear is that we need a significant scale-up in terms of effort and funding to be able to deal with the situation," added Mr. Ngokwey, who is also the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the country. "With the increased violence in the last 10 days we are beginning to see more challenges in terms of having access to the vulnerable population," he said.
The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in western Côte d'Ivoire is currently estimated at 45,000, with another 10,000 people having moved in with host families after fleeing their homes, Mr. Ngokwey said. In the capital, Abidjan, the number of IDPs has risen to 300,000 and could go up to 450,000, he added.
An initial appeal launched in January seeking $32 million to respond to the humanitarian crisis in is expected to be 45 per cent funded by the end of the week, Mr. Ngokwey said, cautioning that the amount of funds required is out of date as it does not reflect the recent deterioration of the situation. A revised appeal is being prepared, he added.
Speaking at the same news conference, Moustapha Soumare, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Liberia, said the influx of Ivorian refugees into Liberia is threatening the country's tenuous democratic and development gains, as the country itself emerges from years of conflict.
"We have more than 90,000 refugees who have crossed the border," said Mr. Soumare, adding that an estimated 40,000 of the refugees arrived over a three-day period over the past week.
Of the $55 million sought by the UN and its partners to tackle the refugee crisis in Liberia, about 32 per cent has been received, Mr. Soumare said.
Meanwhile, the UN peacekeeping mission in Côte d'Ivoire reported that the number of people killed since mid-December last year has risen to 410, saying casualties have mounted with the recent escalation of fighting.
"Following the violent clashes in several areas of Abidjan and the interior, our division of human rights has documented 18 new cases of deaths, including 4 women," said Hamadoun Touré, the spokesperson for the mission, which is known as UNOCI.
He stressed that children had been hit particularly hard by the crisis. "Some of them are going through physical suffering – killed, maimed for life and often forced to leave their families and abandon school to escape the fighting.
"This is on top of the enormous psychological trauma of children whose parents are sometimes killed before their own eyes," Mr. Touré added. "UNOCI condemns these grave violations against children and demands that perpetrators be held accountable," he said.
Mar 17 2011 6:10PM
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