§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, following the mission by the United Nations Human Rights Commission to Côte d'Ivoire at the end of December 2002, and recent reports by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees of large numbers of internally displaced people fleeing the conflicts in both Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia, they consider that the situation in the region amounts to an overwhelming humanitarian crisis. [HL 1709]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Amos)Latest reports from the UN estimate that at least 250,000 people have fled Côte d'Ivoire to neighbouring countries such as Ghana, Mali and Burkina Faso, and another 600,000 are internally displaced. The renewed conflict in Liberia has caused many Liberians and Sierra Leonean refugees to cross into Sierra Leone and Guinea. In response to the crisis in Côte d'Ivoire, the Department for International Development has provided around £1 million to humanitarian operations through ICRC and the NGO Merlin as well as 2,000 tents, 30,000 blankets and 200 rolls of plastic sheeting to boost UNHCR's regional stockpile in Accra. There is a risk that there could be a rapid deterioration in the situation affecting large numbers of people, and we are therefore continuing to monitor developments closely in consultation with international agencies, including the UN. We are also working closely with others in the international community to support regional efforts to implement the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement. In this context, the UK Government have provided £2 million to support deployment of the Ghanaian contingent of the ECOWAS peace-keeping force.