Baladi - Coverage
Asharq Al-awsat quoted the United Nations aid agency announcing that $8 billion is needed to help Syrians affected by their country’s conflict.
Speaking at a two-day donor conference in Brussels, Mark Lowcock, the head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), said resources for work inside Syria and with refugees in neighboring countries were "desperately short."
"We're looking for $3.5 billion for urgent humanitarian assistance inside Syria for 13 million people and then $5.6 billion to help those countries bordering Syria who are hosting refugees," Lowcock told AFP, saying around $1.2 billion had already been raised.
Programs may have to be cut back if funds are not forthcoming, he warned.
Donor countries, aid groups and UN agencies are meeting for the seventh international conference on Syria's future as the conflict, now in its eighth year, shows no sign of letting up.
Ministers will gather to make financial commitments on Wednesday, with EU and UN officials hoping to do better than the $6 billion pledged last year.
Source: Asharq Al-awsat