ASEAN Secretariat, 16 June 2008

The ASEAN Secretariat received a US$850,000-grant from World Bank today for disaster assessment and recovery activities in cyclone-hit Myanmar. Dr Soeung Rathchavy, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN Secretariat and Mr Joachim von Amsberg, Country Director for Indonesia, World Bank signed the grant agreement this afternoon.

The grant from the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery is to support ASEAN’s leadership role in the humanitarian efforts in Myanmar. Under the grant, the World Bank would fund US$850,000 to strengthen the capacity of the ASEAN Secretariat in the coordination of international response and senior-level dialogue on recovery planning as well as training of ASEAN technical staff in damage and loss assessment.

“We would like to thank the World Bank who is among the first few agencies to have come forward to extend assistance to Myanmar through ASEAN,” Dr Rathchavy said. Besides the grant, the World Bank has sent their technical experts to Myanmar to assist with the Post Nargis Joint Assessment and recovery planning.