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OCHA closes humanitarian response fund in RI

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Wednesday that it had concluded the operation and management of the Humanitarian Response Fund (HRF) after 13 years in operation

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Wed, December 3, 2014

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OCHA closes humanitarian response fund in RI

T

he United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Wednesday that it had concluded the operation and management of the Humanitarian Response Fund (HRF) after 13 years in operation.

The decision was taken considering the Indonesian government'€™s continuously growing capacity in dealing with disaster management, the office said.

UN under secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos, commended achievements the HRF Indonesia had made, including playing a pivotal role in enabling national and international NGOs to respond to humanitarian needs in Indonesia since its establishment.

'€œOver the years, OCHA has worked with other in-country stakeholders to support the Indonesian government to develop its own capacity to respond to emergencies,'€ Amos said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

She further said: '€œIndonesia today is a low-middle income country and its government has shown leadership in responding to and mobilizing resources for humanitarian assistance in the aftermath of natural disasters.'€

Introduced to Indonesia in 2001, the fund addressed emergency needs by providing humanitarian NGOs with a rapid and flexible funding mechanism to meet short-term emergency priorities in vulnerable communities.

In 2001-2004, the fund was used mainly to support various emergency response projects in post-conflict areas, such as Aceh, Central Sulawesi, Maluku, North Maluku and West Kalimantan. The fund has been used to respond to natural disasters in areas across the country since 2005.

OCHA Indonesia'€™s head of office, Rajan Gengaje, highlighted the fund'€™s success and value in addressing humanitarian needs.

'€œQuick funding mechanisms like HRF Indonesia indeed help OCHA ensure that timely and much needed assistance is provided to people affected by sudden onset disasters,'€ Gengaje said.

'€œAs the NGOs and community-based organizations possess greater, in-depth insights into local issues and challenges, their support as implementing partners adds immense value to the contributions provided by donors. It is all about providing the affected people the required assistance in time.'€

HRF has disbursed more than US$12.7 million to help more than 2.5 million people affected by crises. At closing, 56 organizations comprising 30 local NGOs and 26 international NGOs had been involved in the implementation of 157 projects. (ebf)(+++)

 

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