Yangon, 23/05/08 - CARE welcomes the Myanmar government decision to allow international aid workers into the cyclone-affected country, as announced today by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. CARE hopes it will lead to an immediate scale-up of the emergency response to provide aid to all survivors who need it.

"This is a significant step forward, and could be a turning point in the aid response," said Brian Agland, CARE's Country Director in Myanmar. "We welcome the agreement that has been reached between the U.N. Secretary-General and government authorities in Myanmar that will facilitate the immediate entry of emergency response experts. The emphasis is on getting things to happen faster so we can get emergency relief to the survivors who desperately need it.

"CARE has several emergency experts ready to deploy to Myanmar to provide their assistance to the people in need," said Agland, who will meet with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon tomorrow along with representatives from other aid agencies.

"CARE has already started a pipeline of people into the country, and if this decision means people can get in faster, that's excellent news. We also hope that this is the first step in coming to an agreement on further expediting the receipt and clearance of goods into Myanmar."

CARE has seven emergency specialists ready to deploy to Myanmar in the field of logistics, operations management, water and sanitation, emergency coordination and monitoring and evaluation, to assist with CARE's ongoing response. CARE already has more than 550 staff in the country, and has provided assistance to nearly 100,000 cyclone survivors. CARE has been working in Myanmar for 14 years, and was able to respond immediately to the disaster.

"There is an urgent need to provide assistance to all affected areas. We hope that this means that there will be access for emergency experts, regardless of nationality, to all affected areas to provide assistance to all survivors," Agland said. -30-

For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact:

Melanie Brooks (In Bangkok) Tel: +66.2.204.2561 Mobile: +66.81.915.8108 E-mail: mbrooks@care.org

Roslyn Boatman (In Australia) Tel: +61.3.9421.5572 Mobile: +61.419.567.777 E-mail: roslyn.boatman@careaustralia.org.au

About CARE in Myanmar: CARE is one of the world's largest international humanitarian and emergency relief organizations. CARE has been working in Myanmar (Burma) for 14 years—mostly on food security, health programs, HIV/AIDS prevention and on water and sanitation. CARE has 550 staff members in Myanmar working on projects in 120 villages and towns across the country.