Fresh cash needed for tsunami recovery

By Jorn Madslien
BBC News business reporter

The international community has pledged humanitarian assistance of more than $4.2bn in the wake of the Asian tsunami, which caused the deaths of about 290,000 people, according to the United Nations (UN) Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Rebuilding after the tsunami: who has donated how much, and where is the cash going? At-a-glance

Add to the pledges by governments those from multilateral organisations and the total tops $6.9bn, research by Reuters found.

Reuters also estimates that private donations overall have reached $5bn - a broader estimate than the UN's which has only counted $1bn of private donations.

This brings the total funds on offer to about $12bn, making the tsunami efforts historic in their generosity.

By and large, despite complaints of problems - such as aid not reaching victims or money ending up in the wrong hands - charities report that the funds coming their way are being wisely spent.

"The money donated is being spent properly, to time and on budget," insists Richard Miller, ActionAid's UK director.

Failure to pay

But not all the money that appeared to be forthcoming early this year has arrived.

Pledges made by governments immediately after the disaster do not equate to firm commitments.

Rebuilding could take a decade, according to some estimates

In February this year, fears that government donors would fail to deliver on their lofty promises spurred United Nations (UN) special envoy Margareta Wahlstrom into action.

Ms Wahlstrom pleaded with them to pay up in order to enable the agency to "do work on the ground".

Many governments responded promptly and have now paid what they promised, but there are notable shortfalls which critics say should be causing intense embarrassment six months after the tsunami hit.

According to UN figures, some of the world's industrialised nations - notably the US, Canada and Australia - have only contributed between one and two thirds of the aid that they initially pledged.

Nevertheless, the statistics should not be automatically taken as a sign of stinginess on part of the donor countries.

At times, red tape at home has slowed things down. At other times, indecision about how and where the money should be spent has delayed aid.

"It is hard to commit the finance until you have a clear idea of where your money is going," says Jehane Sedky-Lavandero, a spokeswoman for UN special envoy former US President Bill Clinton.

Those in charge of spearheading the relief effort say more money should be forthcoming from donor countries, with ever more pledges being converted into hard cash now that the affected countries have outlined their long-term recovery needs in detail.

"We cannot say that it is a done deal but we think the goodwill is there," says Ms Sedky-Lavandero.

Long-term reconstruction

The focus is now moving beyond squabbles about whether or not promises have been honoured and onto the future of the more than a million survivors who were displaced by the disaster.

UN special envoy Bill Clinton says the battle is far from over

Rebuilding areas hit by the tsunami, where everyone from fishermen to tourism industry workers were affected, could take at least five years. Some say it could take a decade.

Infrastructure must be rebuilt. Schools and hospitals must recruit staff. Many will need psychological treatment.

The cost of rebuilding affected areas could exceed $9bn, recent UN estimates state.

There are still worries that an estimated $4bn shortfall in funds for long-term reconstruction projects will not be met by further donations.

Enormous job

The global community is also facing logistical challenges as it strives to turn generous donations into lasting humanitarian results, points out President Clinton.

"For a period of time, everyone focused on saving lives without regard to nationality, politics or anything else," he observes.

Agencies fear that donor generosity is slipping

"But while the immediate relief effort was unprecedented in its scope, we cannot underestimate the enormity of the job that remains."

Paul Wolfowitz, president of the World Bank which has committed more than $835m to recovery programs, agrees.

"There are big challenges ahead in coordinating the rebuilding effort and guaranteeing that the money pledged gets to people in need," he says.

"A key focus of the Bank's work has been to ensure that affected communities are involved in assessing their needs and designing recovery programs."

So while it seems clear that the commitment is there on the ground to make the move from life-saving relief to long-term recovery, the question is whether the world's generosity will remain strong enough to help it happen.