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The OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC), comprised of the world’s major donor countries, met on 12 January to discuss members’ individual and collective aid responses to the Indian Ocean tsunami disaster. Donors emphasised the importance of a smooth and rapid transition from humanitarian assistance to support for rehabilitation and reconstruction led by the governments and people of the affected countries.
Member countries attached great importance to the transparency of reporting on the pledges, commitments and disbursement of the massive amounts of funds earmarked by governments, private individuals and the private sector for humanitarian and reconstruction work in the tsunami-affected countries. The DAC, in close collaboration with the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, will be tracking expenditures on emergency relief and reconstruction assistance through enhancements to their existing systems (see www.reliefweb.int and www.oecd.org/dac/stats).
Donors stressed that in a post-disaster context, especially one affecting so many countries, the need for aid to be coordinated and harmonised is vital for it to most effectively assist the millions of people affected by the tragedy. They agreed that special attention be given to reducing the vulnerability of the poorest, especially women and children, to natural disasters. DAC members committed to maintaining their support for humanitarian crises elsewhere in the world and to continuing their long term development cooperation efforts aimed at reducing poverty and improving the lives of people globally.
Members also discussed the importance of evaluating the current humanitarian operations in countries affected by the tsunami so as to provide lessons for improvement of future response to natural disasters. Contacts have already been established between the DAC’s Evaluation Network and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) with the aim of supporting an evaluation of the response to the emergency and the transition to recovery.
The DAC will stress, in its work with the United Nations and the International Financial Institutions, the need for donors to support affected countries’ own recovery efforts, with particular emphasis on use of local systems and harmonisation of donor practices. The integration of aid effectiveness principles into reconstruction efforts will be discussed at the Paris High-Level forum on “Aid Effectiveness, Harmonisation, Alignment and Results” to be held 28 February – 2 March, 2005. As well, this issue will be covered with emerging donors on 1-2 February, 2005 during the “Forum on Partnership for More Effective Cooperation”.
For key aspects of its contribution noted above the DAC would draw on its work in the past on disaster mitigation and the evaluation of humanitarian assistance.
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