UN Contributes $2.5 Million Aid to Jamaica for Hurricane Beryl Recovery Efforts
The investment comes from $4 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund
On Friday, the UN allocated $2.5 million to Jamaica to alleviate the effects of Hurricane Beryl, which has left the country with significant damage and at least two deaths.
RELATED:
Hurricane Beryl Advances Over Yucatan in Mexico
The investment comes from $4 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund, which is dedicated to providing rapid and reliable humanitarian assistance to those affected by meteorological disasters and emergencies, and that were unlocked last Wednesday when the serious damage of the Beryl was known.
The UN coordinator in Jamaica, Dennis Zulu, said that the purpose of the donation is mainly to assure refugees, ensure the availability of drinking water, as well as try to restore electricity service on the island.
Zulu recalled that 70% of the customers of the National Water Commission of Jamaica, about 400,000 people, do not have access to drinking water due to the impact of the hurricane. He stressed that 40% of the population in the country does not have electricity.
“We have twelve UN agencies resident in Jamaica, and nine working outside the country. In recent years we have been working to support Jamaica’s resilience, given its vulnerability and that of other Eastern Caribbean countries to the effects of climate change, such as Hurricane Beryl”, said Simon Springett, the organization’s resident coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean.
Springett warned that what is happening in the Caribbean “is only part of what will be an active hurricane season”.