Saudi king donates $10M to ‘Yolanda’ victims–DFA

Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud AFP FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – The King of Saudi Arabia has donated $10 million for the relief and rehabilitation efforts in the Visayas hit by super typhoon Yolanda (international name Haiyan), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

Philippine Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Ezzedin Tago said that he was informed by their Minister of Finance about the donation and were looking on how they could ensure that the amount would reach those in need.

“We thank [Saudi] King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, for his generous contribution to the relief efforts for the Yolanda victims. The Kingdom and its people have long been kind hosts to Filipinos in the Kingdom,” Tago said in a statement released by the DFA.

There is an estimated 1.5 million Overseas Filipino Workers in Saudi Arabia.

“We value our relationship specially the bond between our peoples.  The King has again proved he is the humanitarian king, and the Filipino government and people are very grateful for his kindness,” he added.

At least $263 million worth of foreign aid, both in cash and non-cash, from more than 40 countries has so far been received by the country, according to the Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAiTH) website launched by the government.

The United States has also sent into the country many of its air and sea assets to aid in the relief operations.

International organizations, such as the World Food Program, UNICEF, World Vision, Asian Development Bank, have also poured assistance into the badly hit provinces by sending relief teams to provide medical care and rehabilitation.

Almost 4,000 casualties have been recorded by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) Tuesday with at least 18,000 injured.

Ten million people are estimated to have been affected and the cost of damages to infrastructure and agriculture has reached P11 billion.

Despite the large amount of relief aid pouring in, the United Nations has said that millions were still hungry.

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