UNITED NATIONS APPEALS FOR $16.6 MILLION FOR TIMOR-LESTE

 

NEW YORK, 17 January (OCHA) -- The United Nations and the Government of Timor-Leste have appealed for $16.6 million to support the return, resettlement and reintegration of an estimated 100,000 displaced persons in Timor-Leste during the first six months of 2007.

The Consolidated Appeal for Timor-Leste, which was presented to donors today in Geneva and will be launched locally tomorrow in Dili, proposes 31 projects to address remaining humanitarian needs.  The Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, Dr. José Ramos Horta, and the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Atul Khare, have thanked the international community for the generous support for the previous Flash Appeal for Timor-Leste, which enabled humanitarian organizations to support the Government in providing assistance to the displaced population in Timor-Leste through the end of 2006.

At the height of last year’s crisis, some 150,000 Timorese were estimated to have been displaced in conjunction with the eruption of violence between rival political factions in May 2006. Although the political and security situation has since stabilized, particularly following the deployment of international forces at the end of May, the majority of the displaced have been unable to return to their homes.  Nearly 100,000 people -- ten per cent of the country’s total population -- continue to live in displacement camps or with host families.  The incidence of food insecurity is on the rise in districts and malnutrition remains at high levels.

United Nations Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Governance Support, Development and Humanitarian Coordination Finn Reske-Nielsen highlighted the strategic priorities of humanitarian response. In addition to supporting the return of internally displaced persons, the 2007 Consolidated Appeal (CAP) seeks to reduce vulnerability, ensure emergency preparedness and response to new crises and natural disasters, and support sustainable national reconciliation initiatives through the implementation of 31 projects in agriculture, education, food, health, water and sanitation, protection, security, and coordination.  In complementing other bilateral and multilateral partners’ efforts, the 2007 CAP will also help lay the foundations for the transition to early recovery and rehabilitation.

Timor-Leste is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking 142^nd out of 177 countries on the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Index.  One fifth of the population lives on much less than $1 per day, while 44 per cent of the population suffers from food insecurity.  The country suffers from high levels of unemployment, and the private sector has been almost completely disrupted.  By dint of geography, Timor-Leste is also vulnerable to natural disasters such as floods, drought, landslides, cyclones and earthquakes.

Ten United Nations agencies, including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as the International Organization for Migration (IOM), four non-governmental organizations (NGOs) -- the Christian Children’s Fund (CCF), Oxfam, Plan International, and Triangle Génération Humanitaire (TGH) -- and the Timor-Leste Red Cross Society (Cruz Vermelha de Timor-Leste - CVTL) have submitted projects for funding within the appeal.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, OCHA- New York, tel.: +1 917 367 5126, mobile: +1 917 892 1679; Kristen Knutson, OCHA- New York, tel.: +1 917 367 9262; Elisabeth Byrs, OCHA-Geneva, tel.: +41 22 917 2653, mobile: +41 79 473 4570.  OCHA press releases are available at http://ochaonline.un.org or www.reliefweb.int.

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