UN official: Malians desperately need assistance to rebuild

John Ging, Director of Operations at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Tuesday called on the international community to be generous and help Malians rebuild their lives after a year of brutal violence and economic hardship. "The people of Mali have suffered appallingly. Now is the time for us to help," Ging told a press conference following a four-day mission to Mali, adding that community leaders emphasized to him that they did not want to become dependent on international aid but were seeking basic support. "These are dignified people who are not asking for much," he said, adding that in the north, Malians want to get back on their feet after a year of brutality and devastation. They want protection. They want to send their children back to school, to have a functioning health service, to reopen markets and to sow their crops in time for a successful harvest." Ging called on donors to increase their support for humanitarian aid urgently, noting that the 2013 humanitarian appeal in Mali called for USD 373 million, including USD 153 million for the most urgent interventions in the next six months, but has so far only received USD 17 million. Since the conflict began in January 2012, more than 430,000 people have been displaced, including more than 170,000 who have sought refuge in neighbouring countries. Consequently, health clinics became short of doctors, schools without teachers and power plants without engineers, and food insecurity in the north has increased due to the disruption of trade routes and a steep rise in food prices. He said those who left are too traumatized to return to their homes. "The people of the north are very traumatized by the experience of the past year and very much still in fear ... They do not feel yet that it is safe to return. The people who never left don't feel it is safe. They don't have the confidence yet that they have entered the new era," he added. Ging said the UN told the Malian Government that they have to prove that it is "capable of making secure the places for return and that there will be no reprisals. It is also a fact that people fear the security forces." Northern Mali was occupied by radical Islamists after fighting broke out in January 2012 between Government forces and Tuareg rebels. The conflict prompted the Malian Government to request assistance from France to stop the military advance of extremist groups.