Rangoon/Bonn. Welthungerhilfe has put a chain of supplies into place in the until now inaccessible Irrawaddy Delta. Every day, around 25 tonnes of relief supplies are being moved into the disaster zone. "For over a week now, work has been going well, we will soon be able to reach 50,000 people." reports Angela Schwarz, Welthungerhilfe's Regional Director in Myanmar. "This wouldn't be possible without our Burmese colleagues, whose working situation in devastated areas is often on the brink of the bearable."

"Up until now we've been purchasing the necessary relief supplies in the country itself," explains Angela Schwarz. Every day five HGV trucks leave Rangoon, each carrying five tonnes of supplies to the ravaged town of Bogale. It is only thanks to the Burmese colleagues at the wheel that these trucks are allowed to pass the government checkpoints without hindrance. From Bogale, supplies are transported into the southern villages via boat along river branches which are difficult to navigate. Here people have been cut off from all supplies since disaster struck. Each family is receiving food for at least two weeks, as well as buckets, rope and tarpaulin to collect rainwater.

Welthungerhilfe welcomes the decision of the Burmese government to allow relief into the country via the neighbouring ASEAN nations. "We hope that victims of the disaster will now be provided for and the first, crucial steps towards reconstruction of the country can begin," says Angela Schwarz.

On request, an interview can be arranged with our staff member in Rangoon, Ralph Dickerhof.

Welthungerhilfe has been active in Burma since 2002. The prime focus of the work is food security and water supplies in the Northeast of the country and suburbs of Rangoon. Around 150 local Welthungerhilfe employees are currently working in the affected area.

Welthungerhilfe is a member of the alliance www.entwicklung-hilft.de, an association of German aid organisations for acute emergency aid and long-term development cooperation.