ADB approves $2 million grant to support Philippines' emergency response to damage from ''Odette''
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $2 million grant to support the Government of the Philippines’ emergency response to the devastation in central and southern provinces caused by Typhoon ''Odette'' (international name Rai), the strongest typhoon to make landfall in the country in 2021.
The grant under ADB’s Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund will provide humanitarian assistance to about 15,000 households, or about 75,000 people, in Visayas and Mindanao severely affected by the 16 December typhoon.
It will fund food vouchers to be distributed to target communities, which beneficiaries can exchange for food in selected markets. The grant also includes logistics support for the food assistance delivery.
“Typhoon Odette’s damage on housing, agriculture, and infrastructure amid the COVID-19 pandemic has made life more difficult for Filipinos in affected areas,” said ADB Director General for Southeast Asia Ramesh Subramaniam. “This assistance will help finance the humanitarian needs of those residents, especially people living in remote areas.”
ADB is partnering with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to deliver the food assistance. It builds on WFP’s ongoing work with the Department of Social Welfare and Development to provide emergency relief to typhoon-hit areas.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council estimated the typhoon caused P24.6 billion (nearly $500 million) in damage to crops, public infrastructure, and private property. Several areas remain blocked by collapsed roads and bridges, and with power supply yet to be fully restored.
The category 5 typhoon destroyed more than 1.7 million houses in eight provinces. The United Nations estimated over 9.9 million people across the six worst-hit regions were affected by the typhoon, with nearly 144,000 people still without a home as of January 28.
In December 2021, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte declared a state of calamity for a year in the six regions to accelerate the rescue, relief, and rehabilitation efforts.'' ADB
