The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) today approved by acclamation a Resolution in which it expresses "its condolences and utmost solidarity to the People and Government of El Salvador following the loss of human lives and the destruction caused by torrential rains last weekend."
In the document, the Permanent Council requests the Secretary General of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza, that he immediately begin "making the immediate arrangements needed with the international agencies and competent bodies, including the Inter-American Committee on Natural Disaster Reduction (IACNDR), in order to extend technical and financial support for the work begun by the Government of El Salvador to deal with the emergency in its country."
Finally, the Resolution calls on the international community to "continue to provide support, in close coordination with the Government of El Salvador, to that country in order to contribute to the solution of the current situation, including national reconstruction and normalization efforts."
The interim Representative of El Salvador before the OAS, Ambassador Luis Menéndez, recalled during the session that the toll Hurricane Ida left in his country was more than 140 dead and 60 disappeared, 13,680 people evacuated that sought refuge in 118 shelters and 1835 affected homes.
It is worth noting that during the course of a ceremony held before the special session of the Permanent Council, Secretary General Insulza presented the Government of El Salvador with a donation of 20,000 US dollars from the Inter-American Emergency Aid Fund (FONDEM).
During the event, Insulza announced that the Pan American Development Foundation will also assist El Salvador with further donations. The donation was received by the interim Representative of El Salvador before the OAS, Luis Menéndez.
Reference: E-378/09
