S’pore Red Cross collects $37.5m for Japan’s quake, tsunami victims

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Red Cross has received S$35.7 million to date, for victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

It marks the largest donation amount Singapore has collected for a single country.

Of the $35.7 million collected, about $1.5 million was for immediate relief, $9.3 million for the recovery period, and $19.3 million for reconstruction.

Under immediate relief, some $1.25 million went to the Japan Red Cross and the rest for relief supplies such as bottled water and blankets.

The immediate relief phase took some two weeks to complete.

As for the recovery phase, the bulk of it (S$4 million) went to renovate a night—time temporary medical centre and temporary nursing school.

For reconstruction, S$11.1 million was spent on a multi—purpose hall in Iwate Prefecture as it was the area most badly hit.

Other projects under the reconstruction phase include a nursery school in Miyagi Prefecture and a community centre in Isobe Prefecture.

An extra S$2 million was set aside as additional support for Japan’s Red Cross, and S$3.6 million was put into a contingency fund, which will meet cost escalations or foreign exchange differences during the reconstruction phase.

Any remainder surplus will be channelled to projects that will benefit survivors.

The Singapore Red Cross says Singapore is the only country to have gone direct to the prefectures to fund projects.

— CNA/de