WORLD / Asia-Pacific

UN still needs US$60 mil for Indonesia earthquake
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-07-05 13:37

The United Nations said Wednesday it still needs more than US$60 million (euro47 million) to fund relief work following a devastating earthquake in Indonesia, warning that tens of thousands of survivors are still short of shelter and decent sanitation.

The 6.3-magnitude quake struck central Java province on May 27, killing more than 5,700 people and leaving some one million others homeless. Though emergency teams were on the ground quickly, funding is still needed for longer-term reconstruction and aid.

In a plan covering the next five months of its operations in the region, the United Nations said it was short of US$60,242,964 (euro47,105,185).

The world body said survivors were still waiting for 100,000 tarpaulins and some 30,000 toilets need to be repaired or constructed.

Estimates by the government, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank show the quake caused some US$3.1 billion (euro2.5 billion) in damage.

So far, Indonesia has received pledges totaling US$65 million (euro51.7 million) in grants from the Asian Development Bank and other multilateral institutions, as well as individual countries, for rebuilding.