International aid for Philippines reaches to $54.38 M

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - International assistance for relief and rehabilitation efforts in areas affected by typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda) in the Philippines has reached to P2.37 billion ($54.38 million), a senior government official said today.

Philippines' Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Raul Hernandez said in a news briefing that the assistance, which was provided by 33 countries and international organizations, was in the form of relief goods, financial aid, equipment and search and rescue.

"The actual value could be significantly higher," Hernandez said, noting that there were donors who did not come out with the estimate of their assistance since they were in the form of medical teams and search and rescue.

Philippine Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said that it was comforting to know that the Philippines is not alone in facing the tragic incident brought by the typhoon.

"Certainly it gives us comfort that we are not alone in this fight in rehabilitating affected areas, in providing relief goods, " he said as he thanked the international community for its assistance to the Philippines.

He said that British Prime Minister David Cameron was one of the world leaders who called up Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III to express sympathies for the Filipinos.

The latest official report released today showed that some 1,774 people were killed from the typhoon and over 9.8 million others were affected.