More than 200,000 people have received humanitarian assistance and essential services over five weeks after the devastating earthquakes in Venezuela, the United Nations (UN) has said.
Speaking at a news conference at the UN headquarters in New York, the UN Deputy Spokesperson, Farhan Haq, said the support was delivered through the joint efforts of the UN, its humanitarian partners, local communities and Venezuelan authorities.
According to him, the assistance includes hot meals, healthcare, safe drinking water, shelter, as well as legal and psychological support for women, children and other vulnerable groups.
Haq said the Venezuelan Government and UN partners had also launched a needs assessment to guide recovery, reconstruction and long-term development efforts.
He, however, noted that the Humanitarian Response Plan is only 42 per cent funded, stressing that sustained international support is needed to enable humanitarian organisations to continue assisting affected communities.
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s official death toll from the twin earthquakes that struck the country’s north-central region on June 24 has risen to 6,125, according to the latest reconstruction bulletin.
Authorities said thousands of homes remain unsafe as assessments of damaged buildings continue more than five weeks after the disaster.
