TOKEN AID FOR THAILAND’S FLOOD VICTIMS FROM ADB

TOKEN AID FOR THAILAND’S FLOOD VICTIMS FROM ADB

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Whether this news is gladdening or not, the Asian Development Bank had extended emergency funds worth US $3 million to Thailand to shore up the country’s relief and rehabilitation operations in light of the massive flooding there.

The amount is surely token, as it is worth some couples of toothpick cases for the millions of affected persons. Thailand surely deserves larger relief assistance, most specially from the global corporations that have been operating in the Bangkok region as their central hub in the whole of Asia. The oligarchic companies surely remember Thailand only when their cash registers inflow from their profitable operations, but shirk from the responsibility of helping out during calamities and catastrophies.

Better indeed that the ADB provides some aid for toothpick packs than none at all. Hopefully the same continental bank would allocate billions of dollars for new investments in the country as a way of compensating its toothpick mentality during worst calamities.

[Philippines, 25 December 2011]

Source: http://beta.adb.org/news/adb-gives-emergency-support-thailand-after-worst-floods-over-50-years

ADB Gives Emergency Support to Thailand after Worst Floods in over 50 Years

21 November 2011

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing emergency assistance of $3 million to help Thailand get back on its feet in the wake of the country’s worst flooding in more than half a century.

“The scale and magnitude of the floods are immense and this grant will help Thailand address some of the most immediate, pressing needs,” said Craig Steffensen, ADB’s Country Director in Thailand.

The floods, sparked by heavy rains in August and September, have over 600 people dead and inundated homes, farmland and businesses, including parts of the capital Bangkok and surrounding districts. All affected provinces have been declared disaster areas and the country’s gross domestic product could decline by up to 2% as a result of the devastation.

ADB’s grant will support the provision of food, water, and other essential services to people who have been forced to flee their homes and others affected by the floods. It will be coordinated with assistance being provided by other development partners, including the United Nations, World Bank, European Union, Japan and the United States.

The grant is being provided from ADB’s Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund, which was established in 2009 to provide quick disbursing grants to help countries affected by natural calamities meet their immediate needs. It also helps bridge the gap ahead of longer term post-disaster reconstruction assistance and disaster risk reduction initiatives.

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