Ireland donates further €1 milllion to Niger

The Government is to donate a further €1 million to Niger and neighbouring countries, bringing the total to €3 million to help…

The Government is to donate a further €1 million to Niger and neighbouring countries, bringing the total to €3 million to help fight the ongoing crisis in the region.

"The situation in Niger remains very worrying. For example, there are an estimated 192,000 children suffering from moderate to severe malnutrition," said Minister of State for Development Cooperation and Human Rights, Conor Lenihan said.

The humanitarian crisis in the sub-Saharan republic has been caused by severe drought and a locust plague.

The United Nations estimates that 874,000 people are in danger of starving to death, while an additional 300,000 are also in near-emergency need of food. Most of the deaths to date have been children under the age of five.

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"The UN have scaled up their appeal and we have scaled up our response," added Mr Lenihan. He has rejected recent criticism from Labour and Sinn Fein that Ireland's aid approach to the Niger crisis has come too late.

Mr Lenihan made the announcement following receipt of a report on the situation in Niger from David Andrews, Chairman of the Irish Red Cross and former Minister for Foreign Affairs, who has recently completed a fact-finding visit to the country.

Mr Andrews today called for Ireland's aid agencies to come together to launch a joint appeal for Niger, similar to the UK where 13 NGOs have merged.

"Irish NGOs should form a joint appeal committee, the country has effectively been neglected by the international community to date.," he said

He also called on Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern to urge international donors to set up a global fund to tackle the food crisis.

"This fund should be in the region of €500 million and should be available at all times," Mr Andrews said.

"Ireland, with its own history of famine and its new-found wealth, must encourage the bigger nations to donate funds so that hunger and death will be a distant memory for vulnerable populations."