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Press Releases & Updates

18 NOV 2013

Oxfam aid continues to reach families affected by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines

Oxfam is continuing to reach more people affected by Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines as it delivers emergency relief, which it started doing on 15 November in Northern Cebu. Hygiene and water kits and food-security support were given to more than 700 families at the past weekend in the coastal region of Daanbantayan, which was badly affected by the typhoon.

Oxfam plans to provide vital assistance in the next few weeks to some 20,000 affected families (about 100,000 people). Oxfam is working very closely with partners to deliver water, basic sanitation, and food-security support tents and tarpaulins for emergency shelter. Oxfamaims to reach 500,000 of the most vulnerable families with emergency assistance. Our current response includes the following:

  • 10,000 hygiene kits (each containing soap, a blanket, clean underwear and toothbrushes) are being distributed this week.
  • 17 tonnes of heavy-duty equipment – including water tanks, tap stands, water pumps and emergency toilets – landed at Cebu International Airport on 16 November.
  • In Tacloban, we are working with local authorities to assess the damage to the town’s water supply repairing this could provide water to more than 100,000 people.
  • 1,000 communal latrines and hand-washing stations will be erected in some of the worst-affected areas.
  • Helicopters are on stand-by to fly staff and life-saving kits to the most remote locations.

As affected communities recover from the typhoon, Oxfam will also be supporting households to rebuild their farming and fishing livelihoods and helping to get markets up and running so that food is available in local shops.

Among the residents receiving the Oxfam kits was Annie Postrero Abenasa, 31, who lives with her husband, Christopher Abenasa, and their three children, including an eight-month-old boy and two girls, aged two and three. She said she was still struggling to understand the enormity of what had happened and that they desperately needed help. She said the Oxfam water and hygiene kits would be very useful for her family. “It’s a great help to us because we have nothing. Everything in our house was blown away.” 

Scarlett Johansson, an internationally celebrated actor and Oxfam Global Ambassador since 2005, has recorded a video (http://youtu.be/BPv4tqMOGXk) to call on viewers to make donations to support Oxfam in helping the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan.

 

Oxfam has launched an emergency appeal in response to the disaster.Donations methods are as follows: 

Donations can be transferred to the various bank accounts of Oxfam Hong Kong
Hong Kong
HSBC: 001-0-331858
Bank of China: 012-874-0-010515-7
Wing Hang Bank : 035-802-862123-001
Macau
Bank of China Macau account: 01-01-20-840951 (MOP)
Banco Weng Hang: 743342-001 (MOP)
Banco Tai Fung: 201-1-10056-9 (MOP)
(Bank of China Macau cardholders can make donations via BOC Express or BOCNET)

More donation methods
Hong Kong donation links
https://www.oxfam.org.hk/en/oneoffdonationform_2013it043.aspx
Macau donation links
https://www.oxfam.org.hk/en/oneoffdonationform_2013kn009.aspx
Other donation method
http://www.oxfam.org.hk/en/paymentphilippinestyphoon.aspx

About Oxfam
Oxfam is dedicated to fighting poverty and inequity worldwide. The international and independent development and humanitarian organisation tackles poverty in four main ways: sustainable development in poor communities, disaster relief, local, national and global advocacy, and education with Hong Kong youth. Established in Hong Kong in 1976, Oxfam Hong Kong is a founding member of Oxfam, an international confederation that has assisted poor people in 94 countries. Oxfam Hong Kong alone has supported poor people in over 70 countries/regions.

For media enquiries, please contact
Sarah Chu
Communications Officer
Telephone: + 852 3120-5280 / + 852 9276 0064
Email: sarah.chu@oxfam.org.hk

Cindy Chan
Communications Officer
Telephone: + 852 3120-5201 / + 852 6749 6230
Email: cindyc@oxfam.org.hk