UN aid agencies continue relief efforts in cyclone-affected Madagascar

United Nations humanitarian agencies are continuing to distribute aid in Madagascar, where dozens of people were killed and more than 190,000 others were left homeless by a series of cyclones earlier this year.

Relief efforts are currently concentrated mainly in the east of the Indian Ocean country, which was struck by Cyclone Fame on 27 January, Ivan on 17 February and Jokwe on 5 March. The most deadly of the trio was Ivan, which was responsible for at least 93 recorded deaths.

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has handed out blankets to over 1,400 families and hired a helicopter to carry out intensive vaccination programmes because of concerns over the outbreak of infectious diseases. It has also delivered some 6,000 mosquito nets to village leaders and mayors.

In addition, the agency has ensured that 150,000 Malagasy receive water and sanitation kits, which include buckets, water purifiers and metal cups, and 25 tents have also been set up to accelerate the return of children to local schools.

UN spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters that the World Food Programme (WFP) has also started an air operation to distribute relief supplies.

UN agencies and other humanitarian organizations have already appealed for more than $36 million to provide relief across Madagascar, which is prone to cyclones, particularly at this time of the year. Local authorities have said that Cyclone Ivan was the worst storm of its kind to hit the country since the 1980s.