Tsunami spending under utilised

The UK aid agencies are accused of not fully using charity money collected for the 2004 tsunami.

The Disasters and Emergencies Committee says that UK charities only spend about a third of the money collected.

And it accused them of competing for media coverage, which it said had led to "an opportunistic approach".

As an example, the DEC says Indonesia sustained 60% of the damage in the disaster but was set to get only 31% of the £350m donated.

And many victims are still living in tents one year on from the disaster because charities have little expertise in disaster housing.

The DEC commissioned a team of independent evaluators to assess how the aid agencies, which come under the DEC's umbrella, had responded to the disaster.

In response to the charges, DEC's chief executive Brendan Gormley said: "The conclusion of the evaluation is that the overall work of the DEC agencies has been impressive, and that there are some areas to work on.

"The British public should be clear about two things. Firstly, that the money they generously gave has been used to save the lives of many thousands and improve the lives of millions, and secondly that the DEC agencies will not shy away from acting on the lessons of this report," he adds.

So far the DEC has spent £128 million: £40 million in Indonesia, which suffered up to 80 per cent of the casualties; £40 million in Sri Lanka; £31 million in India and £17 million across Thailand, Somalia, the Maldives and Myanmar.

Indonesia is expected to receive more this year. The DEC is planning to spend £190 million in 2006 on more than 20,000 houses as well as thousands of high-quality temporary shelters.

Read the full report here and the DEC's statement here.


Visit my other blog here