The US government’s aid arm has extended over $8-million (more than P471-million) assistance so far this year to Philippine communities badly hit by a string of strong typhoons that battered the country.
In a Nov. 19 statement, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said that on top of the $1-million additional humanitarian assistance announced by visiting US Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III this week, its earlier typhoon-related aid to the Philippines already exceeded $7-million worth.
The newest assistance is set aside for victims of super-typhoon “Pepito” (international name: Man-yi), which USAID noted struck over 850,000 Filipinos, displaced residents as well as damaged critical infrastructure in its path.
“The compounding effects of typhoons Toraji [known as “Nika” locally], Usagi [“Ofel”], and Man-yi, as well as subsequent floods and landslides over the past week have affected more than two million people,” USAID lamented.
According to USAID, its cumulative aid thus far would “help meet the immediate needs of vulnerable communities affected as a result of the recent floods and typhoons.”
“This funding supports humanitarian partners providing emergency shelter, water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance, as well as other essential relief supplies,” it said.
USAID added that its local partners have been “providing critical humanitarian logistics support for disaster assistance efforts in storm-affected areas.”
“The United States stands with the people of the Philippines and remains committed to helping vulnerable communities prepare for and build resilience to natural disasters,” the aid agency said.
“USAID disaster experts in the Philippines and in the region continue to coordinate with the government of the Philippines and humanitarian partners to meet the urgent needs of storm-affected communities and people in need across the country,” it added.
World Bank estimates show that natural calamities like typhoons and earthquakes, whose frequency intensified in recent years, inflict an average of $3.5 billion (about P206 billion) in asset losses to the Philippine economy yearly.