With a strong team of 170 aid workers, the Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, has delivered humanitarian and relief assistance to 91,987 families, totalling 643,909 persons, in the Governorate of Aden and surrounding cities in Yemen. Recently, the ERC distributed 77,987 tons of food packages to poor families in the Governorate of Aden while citizens in Bab Al Mandab received 7,500 food packages. In the Governorate of Shabwah, the ERC relief team delivered food supplies to 5,000 families and 1,500 food packages to families in Abyan city. An ERC report said that the UAE's major relief agency sent nine aid ships to Yemen before the liberation of Aden and three others afterwards. The nine ships were loaded with 18,322 tonnes of miscellaneous food items, equipment and machines for maintenance and reconstruction of public facilities in the Governorate of Aden. Additionally, the ERC sent a land convoy of 85 trucks, carrying 31,000 food packages, through Saudi borders. Two planes airlifted 103 tonnes of food supplies and school bags. The gross value of the dispatched relief assistance stood at AED63 million. The ninth ship, which docked at Aden port recently, offloaded miscellaneous food materials, clothes, fuel, medical equipment, water pumps, generators, educational and health supplies, and 14 trucks. The ERC team is currently working to maintain and rehabilitate the sewer network. In education, the ERC team is maintaining and rebuilding 154 schools in Aden and more than 64 schools are now ready to welcome students after they were fully maintained, furnished and equipped. Stationery was distributed to students, who had already started their classes. Total cost of maintenance and reconstruction of schools reached AED81.3 million. As part of the UAE's efforts to end disruptions in electricity power supplies and renovate the electricity sector, the ERC has allocated AED220 million to maintain and operate power stations in the Governorate of Aden and deliver generators to these stations from the UAE directly. Fifty-four new generators will be purchased to restore the Aden power transmission network. Life, business and economic and trade activities have begun to return to normalcy as operating capacity in power stations in Aden has reached 90 percent now. As for the sewerage system, the report indicated that the ERC is spending AED6 million to renew the network in Aden. Another AED4.5 million has been earmarked to purchase trucks, 600 waste collection containers and 16 garbage trucks. With regard to the health sector, the report said the ERC team would spend AED35 million to rebuild and refurbish the Al Joumhouria Hospital and its Dialysis Centre as well as the Khalifa bin Zayed Hospital and Basuhaib Hospital. Three centres for reproductive health will also be refurbished, equipped and furnished at a cost of AED4 million. AED7 million has been allocated for maintaining nine other centres for healthcare in addition to another AED2 million for maintaining medical warehouses and health centres in Khormaksar. The total budget for health projects in Aden has been estimated at AED48.5 million. Additionally, AED4 was allocated to purchase medicines for cancer and kidney patients, and AED5 million to purchase ambulances and medicine transportation vehicles. Health assistance in Aden stood at AED9 million, the report indicated. The Restore Hope Hospital was recently rehabilitated by the ERC in the Directorate of Ramah. The project is of special importance as it lies in the midst of the desert directorates and on the international highway that links Yemen with the GCC countries. The report added that the ERC is also working to repair the Corniche in Aden at a cost of AED4 million and eight gardens at a cost of AED16 million. Socially, the ERC has organised three entertainment festivals for children and families at a total cost of AED45,000. Social assistance programmes in Aden, which include AED150,000 for sacrificial meat, AED40,000 for Eid clothing, and AED40,000 for Eid clothing to special needs persons, totalled AED275,000. Trade and economic projects being implemented by the ERC for the benefit of the families of martyrs in Aden stood at AED74,000.
