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Angola: ICRC steps up assistance on the Planalto

19 August 1999
ICRC News 99/34

On 16 August three cargo planes chartered by the ICRC carried more than 100 tonnes of food and other supplies to Huambo. The planes- a Hercules and two Boeing 727s- made seven round trips in all.

The assistance was intended for the tens of thousands of people living in the outskirts of Huambo and Kuito - both displaced persons and local residents - who have been suffering since early this year from the escalation of the fighting. Now in full swing, the operation will continue for the next six months and provide these people with 3,000 tonnes of food a month. Agricultural supplies, including tools and seed, are being distributed as well.

On 9 August ICRC delegates flew back to Malange, where, for security reasons, they had not been able to go for months. After an initial assessment of needs, the delegates provided the city hospital with medical supplies for the treatment of some 200 war-wounded.

On 11 August an appeal was launched to raise 42 million Swiss francs (28 million dollars). With a total budget of slightly more than 54 million francs (36 million dollars), the ICRC operation in Angola will thus become the organization’s third largest in Africa. Among other things, the money will be used to fund aid programmes for the civilian population.