The United Kingdom is providing food, tents, mattresses and other essential supplies for families and orphans who have been affected by floods and mudslides in Peru, its Embassy in Lima announced.
The UK's Department for International Development (DFID) has contributed £320,000 (US$398,592) to Care International, Oxfam, and Action Against Hunger through the START Network to support ongoing relief efforts in Peru after heavy rains caused devastating floods and mudslides across the country.
START Network, of which DFID is a founding supporter, is a global alliance of humanitarian organizations that provide rapid funding to small scale emergencies.
In parallel, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, which includes funding from the UK, has mobilized €250,000 (US$270,363) for emergency relief to communities affected by floods.
The British Embassy in Lima is also supporting immediate relief efforts by providing essential supplies for affected families and orphans, British Ambassador to Peru Anwar Choudhury has announced.
Over 150 families of the Shipibo-Konibo community in Cantagallo (Lima Province) have received humanitarian aid kits, which included inflatable mattresses and pumps, food, drinks, toilet paper, diapers, and other basic necessities.
Additional UK relief efforts provided food, beds, household appliances, and a three-wheeler cargo vehicle to an orphanage in Chilca (Lima province) that was relocated after mudslides made the site inoperable. The orphans also received stuffed Paddington bears.
Humanitarian tents will be donated to families made homeless by the floods.
"I extend my heartfelt condolences and solidarity with everyone who has been affected by the devastating floods across Peru. The UK has tried to act swiftly to deliver aid to communities in need. We will strive to do as much as we can to help as the situation develops in the north, particularly around Piura, and in the Amazon basin near Iquitos," Choudhury assured.
"An important national reconstruction effort will be required and, to that end, the UK is providing Peru with a long-standing commitment of £1bn [US$1.20 billion] in loan options, through UKEF [UK Export Finance], in areas such as infrastructure, energy, and water sanitation, among many other sectors," he added.
About START
START Network is a global, multi-donor humanitarian response mechanism, which provides rapid funding for small to medium emergencies, directly to NGOs. It made a grant of £500,000 (US$622,815) to three NGOs for Peru (Care International, Oxfam and Action against Hunger).
The UK provides 64% of START funding, which has 42 members. DFID provides a total £30m (US$37.368 million) over three years and the Fund addresses some key issues in the humanitarian system. It focuses on less high-profile emergencies, provides faster funding, genuinely empowers NGOs, and pushes decision making down to the national level.
It must be noted the UK government contributed £13.1 billion (US$16.317 billion) to the EU budget in 2016.