NZ to provide further support for quake-hit Turkey, Syria

New Zealand will provide further humanitarian support for Turkiye and Syria, which were both seriously affected by the deadly earthquakes in February.

"The earthquakes on February 6 have had devastating consequences, with almost 18 million people affected. More than 53,000 people have died and tens of thousands more have been injured," New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said yesterday.

This represents the third tranche of humanitarian funding provided by the New Zealand government, totaling 4 million NZ dollars (US$2.5 million) in order to support those in urgent need in the two heavily hit countries, according to Mahuta.

The sum includes 1.4 million NZ dollars ($870,000) to the United Nations Population Fund to deliver essential healthcare services for expectant and new mothers, and protection services for vulnerable women and girls in Turkiye, she said.

New Zealand is also contributing 2.1 million NZ dollars ($1.3 million) for the United Nations Children's Fund operations in Syria to provide education, water and sanitation, medical care and protection services for children and their families, said the foreign minister.

A total of 500,000 NZ dollars ($310,000) in funding will also be made available to accredited New Zealand non-governmental organisations working with their local partners in Turkiye to deliver essential relief, she said.

The funding was pledged at an International Donors' Conference in support of the people in Turkiye and Syria in Brussels on March 20, hosted by the European Commission, the government of Sweden and Turkish authorities.

Yesterday's announcement brings New Zealand's total humanitarian funding for the response to 8.5 million NZ dollars ($5.28 million).