The UK has today announced £50m in new funding to support those affected by the Syrian refugee crisis, bringing the total funding pledged to £139.5m.
The UK funds from the Department for International Development will join those of other UN nations in what is the biggest ever short-term appeal by the international body, aiming to raise $1.5bn.
The UK announced less than one week ago that it would provide a £21m boost to the Syria fund, of which the country had already pledged £68.5m. Announcing the latest £50m funding boost International Development Secretary Justine Greening (pictured with Nick Hurd, minister for civil society) warned that the conflict in Syria is placing an "impossible humanitarian and financial toll on Syrians and on neighbouring countries".
Speaking from Kuwait, she said:
“In Jordan on Saturday, I saw for myself the human cost of this conflict and the massive effort by NGOs to deal with huge numbers of refugees. Warm words alone won’t help those without food, medicine or shelter.
"The UK has more than doubled its funding in the last five days as the level of need spirals – but international donors must now dig deep in Kuwait with the funding needed to save lives and assist neighbouring countries which are having to cope with huge numbers of refugees.”
The latest official figures from the UN show that over 60,000 Syrians have been killed, four million are in "desperate need" with two million have been displaced within Syria. The UN appeal was announced on 19 December 2012. The bulk of the appeal – $1bn – will be used for the Syria Regional Response Plan to support refugees fleeing Syria to Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt. The remainder will be used to support the estimated four million people inside Syria who need urgent humanitarian assistance.
