UN senior official says much improvement in Yolanda disaster zone

LEYTE — Amidst the debris of their houses, fisherfolk of Barangay 89, San Jose, Tacloban City tried to recover the livelihood which super typhoon Yolanda swept away. With materials donated by the United Nations, men were busy building new boats—boats they believed would be the best way to put food on the table.

This was how Valerie Amos, the UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, came upon the residents when she visited them Wednesday.

More than three months after Yolanda struck, the UN was intent in providing livelihood and shelter for the families. Aside from giving them material for boats, the UN also gave pedicabs.

UN Undersecretary General Valerie Amos (center) poses with the recipients of the cash-for-work program in Guiuan, Eastern Samar.

Meanwhile, in Barangay 88, a coco lumber processing shop was put up.

Before visiting Tacloban, Amos checked the conditions in Guiuan, Eastern Samar. Recipients of their cash-for-work program in Barangay 6 greeted her. For P260 pesos a day, men and women cleaned the streets.

In the nearby tent city, 112 families lived. One mother said they were thankful for the daily food rations but what they would like more than anything is a house of their own.

Amos’ visit to Eastern Visayas was her third. Although thousands were still displaced, the UN official said there has been a “great improvement.”

“To see how much has been done with the support of the United Nations, our NGO partners, from the national and international community and the government, shows what can be done when we all work together,” Amos said in a press briefing.

Long way to go

According to UN reports, 14.1 million Filipinos were affected by Yolanda. Some 4.1 million people got displaced.

Captain Leo Lacaba of Barangay 6 in Guiuan is worried. Due to the danger of living near the shore, they would be relocated.

“Our livelihood is the sea,” explained Lacaba. “The problem is, the relocation area is far away from it. How will we secure our bangkas?”

One Tacloban resident cried as she narrated how hard their life still was despite the various aid coming in.

“There is no normalcy in our lives,” she said in between sobs. “The food we eat still comes from relief operations. Our husbands don’t have regular jobs. We don’t know how long this will last.”

Amos recognized the problem and said there was still a long way to go. Since the onslaught of one of the world’s strongest typhoons, the UN had requested $788M from the international community. As of February, 46 percent or $362.48M had been collected. Recently, Amos made another appeal for continued support.

Despite the tremendous challenges, she said the UN was ready to help. —KG, GMA News

Source: Google Alert - "Leyte"