Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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172. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which international aid promised following the natural disaster in the Philippines has materialised; the countries that have to date honoured such commitment; the counties that have not; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3243/15]

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest storms ever recorded, made landfall across the central Philippines on 8 November 2013. It is estimated that it affected more than 14 million people, with almost 4 million displaced, including some 1.5 million children. Over 6,000 lives are known to have been lost with more than 28,000 injured and 1000 people missing. No official pledging conference took place in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan but according to the UN’s Financial Tracking Service, as of 19 January 2015, more than US$844 million has been contributed by the international community in response to UN appeals.

Of this total, $468 million was contributed for the Typhoon Haiyan Action Plan by over 80 entities including donor countries, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, multilateral institutions, private companies and individuals.

The European Commission has provided €40 millionin humanitarian assistance to help those affected by Haiyan. Together with assistance from EU Member States, the total EU aid in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan amounts to over €180 million.

Ireland was one of the first countries to respond to this natural disaster and our contribution to date stands at over €7.1 million. This includes immediate life-saving emergency response and longer-term recovery and reconstruction support.

An enormous amount has been achieved over the past twelve months. I am pleased that a delegation from the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, led by Chairman, Mr Pat Breen, T.D., had the opportunity last November to visit Irish Aid-supported programmes for communities recovering from Typhoon Haiyan in and around Tacloban. The delegation saw at first hand the positive impact that these shelter reconstruction, education and livelihoods programmes are continuing to have on the local communities and in support of the Philippines Government.

We are currently considering how Ireland can best respond to the need for additional assistance in 2015, while remaining mindful of the huge needs of people affected by other humanitarian crises, in Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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173. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the degree to which commitments entered into in the wake of the natural disaster in Haiti have been honoured to date; the number of countries that have already contributed to the extent indicated; the countries that have not; the extent of reconstruction/recovery recorded to date in that country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3244/15]

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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On 12 January 2010, Haiti was struck by one of the most devastating earthquakes in recent history, causing some 230,000 deaths and 300,000 injuries. The earthquake destroyed much of Port-au-Prince and the surrounding areas, left about 1.5 million people homeless and caused losses and damage estimated at approximately €5.9 billion.

Two months after the earthquake, an international donor conference was held in New York, at which US $4.5 billion worth of assistance was pledged by the international community over two years in response to a UN appeal for $1.5 billion. UN figures indicate that, by the end of 2012, $2.38 billion of this had been disbursed, and $3.52 billion by the end of 2014.

Since 2010, the European Commission has provided €248 million to address humanitarian needs such as basic services and protection to those living in camps. In addition, cholera treatment and prevention measures were delivered through water, sanitation and hygiene activities complementing Haitian institutions’ efforts.

Ireland has met its commitments to the people of Haiti. By the end of 2012, Ireland’s pledge of €13 million had been honoured and exceeded, with support totalling almost €14 million.

In addition to this humanitarian support, Irish Aid works to provide longer-term development assistance to the Haitian people through Concern Worldwide and the missionary organisation, Misean Cara. Since 2012 almost €1.65 millionof Irish Aid funding has been channelled through civil society organisations for long-term development work in Haiti.

Ireland has a proud record of meeting our pledges and will continue to use all opportunities to urge our fellow donors to ensure that they meet their humanitarian commitments in full. In order to promote the importance of ensuring that donor aid pledges are credible, achievable, and properly monitored, the OECD has published a ‘Recommendation on Good Pledging Practice’. This comprises a set of principles relating to pledging practice for financial undertakings to developing countries and is designed to serve as a benchmark to help OECD Member States frame future aid pledges in terms that are clear, practical, realistic, and capable of being monitored. Ireland is fully supportive of this important initiative.

Five years on from the devastating earthquake, most of the 1.5 million people who were displaced by the earthquake and who found themselves living in makeshift tents now live in acceptable housing. Haiti’s reconstruction programme is fully under way and massive infrastructure programmes are visible including roads, bridges and social housing.

The efforts of the Haitian people and their partners in the international community are yielding promising results, including four consecutive years of positive GDP growth, rising agricultural exports, and increasing tourist numbers. There is still much more to be done to create the capacity for long-term development that relies less on foreign aid and more on the talent, enterprise, and resilience of the Haitian people.