Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support the Government is providing to people affected by super cyclone Amphan in Bangladesh and India.

The UK has provided £800,000 of rapid release funding to international and local NGOs through the START Fund Bangladesh. This funding will provide water, sanitation and hygiene, healthcare, food, non-food items and shelter for more than 83,300 people for 45-days. The UK is also supporting BRAC Bangladesh, which has provided support to another 6,000 badly affected households, as well as the UN’s humanitarian coordination.

DFID has supported the Government of Bangladesh in disaster preparedness for many years. This has helped the Government to put in place an early warning, evacuation, and response system and build community resilience to repeated shocks.

DFID had previously funded technical assistance to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation to help build the first comprehensive city level flood forecasting and early warning system in India. This was launched in 2019 and helped ensure the government and people received timely warnings of Cyclone Amphan. Since 2004, the Indian Government has stated publicly it neither seeks nor accepts official international assistance ?from foreign governments for disaster relief.