Belgium to provide 13.5 million euros aid for refugees, IDPs in Kurdistan

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region- The Belgian government has announced it is allocating 13.5 million euros of life-saving aid for the victims of the war in Iraq, including Syrian refugees.

“UNHCR, the United Nations refugee organization, will receive a contribution of 2 million euros to improve the reception of Syrian refugees in various camps in Iraqi Kurdistan (amongst others the camps of Kawergosk, Qushtapa, Basirma and Darashakran in the Erbil governorate and Arbat camp in Sulaymaniyah governorate),” the Belgian government said in a statement Friday.

The fund will benefit the refugees and the Internally displaced people (IDPs) in various ways, including preparation for the season and providing accommodation, schools and clean water.

“A part of the funds will be used to prepare the camps for the winter. Another part is aimed at improving the service delivery in terms of accommodation, education, health, water and sanitation,” the statement added.

The aim of the Belgian assistance is to help the victims of war and to take part in rebuilding the areas destroyed in the fight against Islamic State (ISIS).

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization will receive an amount of 2 million euros.

“Belgium also wants to contribute to the stabilization and reconstruction of areas previously held by Daesh (ISIS) and meanwhile liberated. Therefore, to facilitate the return of displaced persons and refugees, 2 million euros will be given to the UNDP fund, ‘Funding Facility for Immediate Stabilization’ (FFIS),” the statement read.

”The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, will receive a contribution of 2 million euros for a two-year programme in order to stimulate incomes from agriculture. Furthermore, 6 million euros will be made available over two years to United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator Lise Grande, who will be able to immediately finance the most pressing needs. Finally, another 1 million euros will be earmarked to OCHA to improve the coordination of all humanitarian aid in Iraq,“ the statement added.

According to a UN report, 25 percent of Erbil’s 2 million population is either a refugee or a displaced Iraqi and an overwhelming 95 percent of the province’s displaced families living out of camp.

The Kurdistan region already hosts some 250,000 refugees from Syria and 2 million Iraqi IDPs, mostly from Anbar and Mosul provinces, who were forced to flee their homes when ISIS seized swathes of Iraq and Syria and began persecuting Shiites and religious minority groups.

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