§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
On what date agreement was reached between the Eritrean People's Liberation Front and the World Food Programme on the use of the port of Massawa, and whether they will list the names of ships which have docked in the port since then; the dates on which they arrived; the tonnages carried in each case; the proportion allocated to each side, and the dates on which these shares were distributed respectively.
The Earl of CaithnessAgreement to reopen the port of Massawa for relief supplies was reached on 17th December. The most recent information we have is that one vessel, the "Far Suez", is being used. It has made two journeys on 8th and 31st January, carrying 10,000 and 11,272 metric tonnes of food respectively. The food is being shared equally between the two sides. The government's share of the 8th January shipment was transported to Asmara on 15th and 31st January. The 31st January shipment of food has been unloaded and the government's share has been delivered to Asmara. The Eritrean Relief Association has started to distribute its portion of the first consignment. We have no information on its detailed plans.