Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
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Damascus, SANA – Local Administration Minister Hussein Makhlouf discussed on Wednesday with Swiss Federal Council Delegate for Humanitarian Aid Manuel Bessler and the accompanying delegation the mechanisms to enhance cooperation to improve the relief and humanitarian situation in Syria.
The Minister pointed out that the Syrian government has so far paid SYP 54 billion in compensation for public and private damages, including infrastructure, shops, facilities and cars, adding that the government is working on supporting small, medium and micro-enterprises to help create job opportunities that will provide permanent incomes for affected people.
He also referred to the government’s work in the field of securing makeshift centers for displaced families and delivering humanitarian aid to the needy and affected people, noting that this is being done in cooperation with the local partners and international organizations to which all necessary facilitations are being provided.
Makhlouf voiced the government’s interest in cooperation with the Swiss side to contribute to the provision of humanitarian and relief aid, particularly in the health sector, expressing thanks to the Swiss Federal Council for supplying the emergency system in Syria with 12 ambulances and a financial grant for a year-long operating expenses.
Since the beginning of 2016, the Syrian government gave approvals to the UN to deliver aid convoys to 73 difficult-to-access areas, said Makhlouf, adding that the number of beneficiaries in these areas exceeded 1.459 million.
For his part, Bessler expressed the Swiss Federal Council’s readiness to cooperate with the Syrian government and the various UN organizations and other international and local associations operating in Syria in a participatory manner, showing the Council’s desire to reach agreements that would facilitate their work in aid delivery.
M. al-Frieh/H. Said
