China sent 10.9 million yuan (US$1.3 million) worth of relief
materials to the tsunami-hit countries of East Africa countries on
Thursday. The materials, shipped from north China's Hebei
Province, are expected to arrive at Nairobi, Kenya, on
Friday.
The shipment includes 250 tents, 4,000 blankets, 350 power
generators, medicine and daily necessities, said Yang Shuzeng, an
official with the Ministry
of Commerce.
The effects of the massive Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
on December 26 last year reached as far as South Africa.
Various relief agencies working in Somalia estimate that the
tsunami killed about 150 people, while 54,000 were in need of
emergency assistance. Northeastern Somalia was the worst
affected.
A report prepared by the Somali government and other agencies
puts the number of dead or missing at 298, with as many as 283
injured in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland alone.
The report also indicates that about 3,344 families living in
areas recently assessed for tsunami damage in Puntland had suffered
a "triple disaster" of displacement owing to drought; decimated
livestock herds; and the tsunami.
Immediately after the disaster, the Chinese government provided
US$250,000 to the affected in east African countries and later
decided also to send relief goods.
(China.org.cn, Xinhua News Agency January 21, 2005)