United Nations in contact and ready to provide aid to Cuba

(KPL/Prensa Latina) The United Nations (UN) confirmed today that it remains in contact with the Cuban authorities to provide aid to the country after Hurricane Oscar hit the east of the island. In a press conference, the deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary General (António Guterres), Farhan Haq, ratified the willingness to support the nation also affected by the total disconnection of its electrical system last week. According to the spokesman, several entities of the United Nations System are preparing supplies previously prepositioned for the response. With that objective, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs sent a small team from Panama that will lead the efforts. For its part, the World Food Program brought aid for 275 thousand people for 60 days while the United Nations Children's Fund hopes to reach more than 40 thousand Cubans with water, hygiene, accommodation and education. Last Monday, the organization confirmed that its Technical Emergency Team remained activated and in c ontact with its national counterparts through its resident coordinator in the largest of the Antilles, Francisco Pichón. Storm Oscar, which crossed the eastern part of the country, left seven fatalities and considerable material damage in the small Caribbean state. The hurricane also caused significant rains in the eastern and central provinces for several days. Coinciding with the storm winds, the country faced a tense context due to the disconnections of the National Electric System (SEN). On October 18, the SEN suffered a total disconnection that caused prolonged blackouts, restored in the middle of the week. According to the Cuban Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, the System's failures after the total collapse are due to its weakening, largely caused by the impact of the United States' economic siege against Cuba. Fuel shortages are the main problem for the sector, which is influenced by the brutal economic, commercial and financial blockade that has lasted more than six decades. Source: Lao News Agency