Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Question 54: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the level of financial aid that will be provided to the escalating emergency in east Africa; if any additional funding will be provided on top of the €400,000 allocation from Irish Aid on 5 July 2011; if he has undertaken any engagement at UN level regarding the emerging reports of the scale of the problem; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21445/11]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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The Horn of Africa is experiencing the most severe food crisis in the world today. Between ten and twelve million people are severely affected in drought-stricken areas of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda – a thirty percent increase since the beginning of the year. The immediate cause of the crisis is a prolonged drought and the failure of at least two seasonal rains, with the situation severely compounded by the ongoing conflict in Somalia, where humanitarian access remains limited.

The Government has been following and responding to this growing humanitarian emergency for many months. At the beginning of 2011, in anticipation of a severe crisis, we pre-approved humanitarian funding of €4 million for UN Agencies and NGOs working in the region and in more recent weeks followed this with the disbursal of additional funding for Concern and Trócaire for their operations in Somalia and Kenya.

As the crisis deepened and in close consultation with the major UN agencies operating on the ground, I last week approved an additional €1 million in funding for emergency food relief and assistance to refugees across the region. Some €750,000 of this funding will help the United Nations World Food Programme in its efforts to dramatically increase the distribution of highly-nutritious foodstuffs to young children and pregnant women, and other vulnerable groups. The remaining €250,000 is being provided to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to support this agency in providing shelter, health care, water and sanitation to the many thousands of Somali refugees fleeing to Ethiopia and Kenya from the drought and conflict in their own country.

Last week's announcement brings to €5.6 million the Government's funding to Concern, Trócaire, Goal and World Vision for emergency food, water, sanitation and health care, and to the United Nations agencies in the region so far this year. In addition, 11 members of the Rapid Response Corps administered by Irish Aid have deployed to the region. The Corps is made up of highly-skilled volunteers who work with UN and other humanitarian agencies in crisis situations.

Ireland also remains a major contributor to the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which was established in 2006 following the Asian Tsunami to provide immediately-accessible funds to the UN for use in a crisis such as that currently underway in the Horn of Africa. Funds are now being drawn down by a range of UN agencies from the CERF for drought-related activities across the region. Ireland has contributed a total of €81 million to the CERF since 2006, including €4 million so far this year.

Irish Aid will remain in close contact with the UN and other humanitarian agencies in the Horn of Africa in order to assess how Ireland might best contribute to assisting the international relief effort.