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Caucasus-Central Asia: Humanitarian funding drops significantly - UN OCHA

Countries
Tajikistan
+ 7 more
Sources
OCHA
Publication date

Almaty, 23 October 2012 – Between 1 July and 30 September humanitarian funding to the Caucasus and Central Asia decreased threefold compared to the funding received during the previous quarter, according to the regional humanitarian funding update prepared by the Regional UNOCHA Office for the Caucasus and Central Asia (ROCCA). Countries in the region received a total of US$5.5 million during the reporting period.

For the second quarter straight, European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) remains the region’s top donor. During the quarter, ECHO provided almost $2.5 million to Armenia and Tajikistan. In the previous quarter, ECHO contributed $10 million in assistance to the region.

Most of the incoming humanitarian funding from July to September was aimed at overcoming consequences of the food crisis in Tajikistan and preparing vulnerable households for the upcoming cold season.

According to the Financial Tracking Service (FTS - fts.unocha.org), during the reporting period of all countries in the region only Kazakhstan provided assistance, namely, to Tajikistan to the amount of $270.000. During the same period last year, the region provided twice as much humanitarian aid, the bulk of which went towards combatting famine in Somalia.

Currently OCHA is working with Azerbaijan to update FTS data on outgoing humanitarian assistance. Media reports indicate that in July-September Azerbaijan provided humanitarian aid to Russia and Iran. OCHA has updated FTS records for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

The funding update also describes the Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP). Traditional donors use CAP as key guidance when distributing humanitarian aid. The CAP mid-year review reports that more than 62 million people in 20 countries around the world are in desperate need for help. This year, CAP estimated that up to $9 billion is required to meet the needs of the people.

A Consolidated Appeal is a humanitarian plan with specific projects aimed to assist the affected population. This procedure is transparent, reliable and effective. The international community is encouraged to closely follow the annual launch of consolidated appeals and the mid-term report on their implementation. This year, OCHA plans to hold a briefing in Astana, Kazakhstan dedicated to the launch of CAP 2013. Purpose of this event will be to inform donors on humanitarian needs around the world.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.