§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has as to the number of Somalis dependent for food aid on foreign donors.
252W
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydIn February the World Food Programme/Food and Agriculture Organisation crop and food supply assessment mission estimated that 200,000 tonnes of imported food aid would be required to support approximately 2.5 million Somalis in the period March to August 1993.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has about the number of children currently dying in Somalia from measles, dysentery, diarrhoea, tuberculosis, malaria and other illnesses.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe demise of health services in Somalia makes it extremely difficult for relief agencies to compile reliable statistics on the incidence of child mortality.
Since January 1992 and in response to individual requests from relief agencies, we have committed £2.8 million in humanitarian aid funds in support of health care activities. This includes support for mother and child health care programmes and an expanded programme on immunisation, both of which are helping to reduce the incidence of disease in children.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress is being made in removal of mines in Somalia; and what assistance his Department has given.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe British company Rimfire has been training and supervising more than 400 local people in a major mine clearance programme in north-west Somalia, the worst affected region, for the last 19 months. Over that period, we have contributed £673,000 to the Hargeisa part of the operation. Work in Hargeisa has now been completed. Later this year we expect UNOSOM II to put forward a plan to address the mine clearance needs of the whole of Somalia. In the meantime Rimfire's multi-donor funded operation in the north-west continues.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in involving Somali professionals in the reconstruction of the country.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydUNOSOM II employs some Somali professional staff and relief agencies rely heavily on Somali staff, many of whom are professionals, to help plan and implement their programmes. We shall encourage the employment of Somali professionals wherever appropriate and expect the numbers employed to accelerate as the process of recovery gets under way.