Help for the earthquake victims in China
The Federal Foreign Office has so far made available emergency aid totalling 2.6 million euro for those affected by the earthquake in China's Sichuan province. These funds have gone towards, among other things, a German Red Cross mobile hospital being set up in Dujiangyan. In addition, a team of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) has set up six water purification units and Caritas International has procured 1,900 urgently needed tents.
Drinking water for the earthquake zone
On 26 May, 22 experts from the THW have arrived in Chengdu along with water purification units and a laboratory. The six water purification units can provide 36,000 litres of drinking water per hour, while the laboratory will enable the experts to constantly monitor water quality.
Mobile hospital in operation
Also on 26 May, the mobile hospital of the German Red Cross has begun to operate. The hospital, worth 1.5 million euro, can treat a population of 250,000. It will be donated to the Chinese Red Cross once the project is over.
Tents for the homeless
The earthquake has forced more than six million people to move to makeshift shelters. Caritas International has received support towards the procurement of 1,900 urgently needed tents which have now arrived in southwest China. Another procurement of tents worth 200,000 euro is planned.
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Handing over the cheque ((c) Jiang Ziwei/ Goethe-Institut)
Donations and spontaneous offers of assistance
A German benefit concert in Chongqing, as part of the "Germany and China - Moving Ahead Together" series of events, raised a further 10 million euro in donations. Moreover, the German people and the German business community have shown considerable willingness to donate funds.
Michael Schaefer, German Ambassador to China, presented a cheque for one million euro to the deputy chairman of the Chinese Red Cross. Shortly after the earthquake struck, the German Government provided 500,000 euro in emergency aid. The "Germany and China" partners collected 100,000 euro, which were handed over by Martin Brudermüller, the representative of the Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business. Another 100,000 euro was made available by the German Chamber of Commerce in China and local German companies.
"At this time Germany and China are truly moving ahead together as friends, not just out of solidarity but, much more importantly, through concerted action," said Mr Brudermüller. He described the concert, which was organized at very short notice, as a remarkable demonstration of this cooperation. A representative of Chongqing's twin city Düsseldorf donated 50,000 euro for the earthquake victims. Major German businesses – among them Siemens, Daimler and BASF – have made individual donations of several hundred thousand euro.
Chongqing businesses, universities, schools, public agencies and TV audiences have also collected donations for the victims. According to the Chongqing local TV station, 100 million renminbi yuan (approx. 10 million euro) have been raised this way. Several million Chinese viewers watched the concert on TV; an audience of thousands filled Chaotianmen Square, with a further two to three thousand listening in from behind the stage.
Last updated 28.05.2008