Emergency Assistance for the Cyclone Disaster in the Union of Myanmar

May 8, 2008

On May 7 (Wed), the Government of Japan decided to provide additional emergency relief goods (blankets, plastic sheets, plastic canteens, portable water tanks, and sleeping mats), equivalent to about 36 million yen, to the Union of Myanmar, which has sustained disaster from strong winds and high waves caused by a cyclone.
In Myanmar, from May 2 (Fri) to 3 (Sat), areas in the southern parts of the country surrounding the Irrawaddy district and the Yangon district were caught in a severe storm, which affected more than 40,000 people including more than 22,000 who were killed. The storm also destroyed public offices including many schools and hospitals, and also houses (as of May 7).The surrounding areas, at present, are also suffering from serious problems such as food shortage caused by obstructed access of transportation, drinking-water shortage caused by unusable wells, and lack of accommodation for the victims.
In the present situation, the Government of the Union of Myanmar, while making relief efforts of its own, has requested emergency assistance by the Government of Japan. Even though the Government of Japan had already decided to provide emergency relief goods (tents, electric generators, and others), equivalent to about 28 million yen, to Myanmar on May it has decided to extend additional emergency assistance to the country in light of the rapidly increasing number of victims.

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