In light of the ongoing refugee crisis in Iraq, the KRG Representative to Austria, Dr. Mustafa Ramazan, on Wednesday, 20 August, met with representatives of Caritas, the Austrian office of the Christian humanitarian relief agency. The start of the donation campaign for the Kurdistan Region and potential cooperation in future aid projects were discussed in the meeting with Mr. Matuschkowitz, Head of the International Programs of Caritas Austria. Mr. Matuschkowitz explained that while traditionally, Caritas Austria had focused more on delivering aid to Lebanon, Syria, and Egypt, it had already responded to these current developments and added the provision of assistance to refugees in Iraq to its international strategy. The relief organization had already started their aid appeal specifically for the 1.5 million refugees across the Kurdistan Region one week ago, and in cooperation with Caritas Iraq is currently evaluating projects on the ground to provide rapid and direct assistance to families in need. The goal of the Caritas donation campaign is to provide relief to about 30,000 families, 150-200,000 people.
Dr. Ramazan briefed the Caritas representatives on the current situation in the Kurdistan Region, and provided advice on how best to provide help directly, effectively, and non-bureaucratically. For the planned projects in Iraq a personal trip to Erbil was recommended, in order to discuss concrete possibilities with members of the big local Christian community Ainkawa and the Disaster Management Team of the Kurdistan Regional Government. This crisis unit is an initiative of the KRG’s Ministry of Health and includes representatives from all ministries and provinces to coordinate humanitarian assistance with the international community and distribute aid to the areas where it is needed the most.
Please support the relief efforts of Caritas Austria in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq by donating to:
CARITAS : Donation account for refugees in Iraq
IBAN: AT92 6000 0000 0770 0004
BIC: OPSKATWW
Keyword „Nothilfe Flüchtlinge Nordirak”