Australia pledges P31.6 million worth of aid to Mayon affacted families

Australia extends a helping hand to the Philippines once more.

It was August last year when the Australian government pledges A$20 million or nearly P800 million worth of assistance for Marawi rehabilitation over the next four years.

Australia was one of the first foreign governments that extended help to the Philippines.  Its Prime Minister talked to President Rodrigo Duterte that the aid is for “recovery and long-term peace and stability in the southern Philippines.”

On Wednesday, the Australian government announced its humanitarian support for the locals of Albay province in Bicol after Mayon Volcano has erupted affecting thousands of people residing near the area.

According to Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, some AUD775, 000 or Php31.6 million worth of assistance will be provided through the Philippines Red Cross. This is to give aid to 30, 000 people in evacuation centers access tarpaulins, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, blankets, jerry cans and hygiene supplies. 

Earlier, the government of the Philippines already established an exclusion zone around the volcano and facilitated evacuation of residents surrounding it after the volcano began erupting on January 13.

Evacuees were forced to leave their houses due to the unpredictable behavior of Mt. Mayon. 

On Monday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvocs) raised the volcano’s alert to level 4 after it billowed two successive 10-km cauliflower-type ash columns, which caused heavy ash falls in the town of Camalig, Guinobatan, and Ligao City.

As of this update, government authorities has placed almost 22 thousand families in Albay are affected of the continuous eruption of Mt. Mayon.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said that total of Php32, 989, 323.78 worth of assistance was provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Health (DOH), Office of Civil Defense (OCD), Local Government Units (LGUs), and other Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) to the affected families.

Source: PNA