Scotland pledges £250,000 emergency aid for Venezuela earthquake relief effort

Humanitarian aid efforts in Venezuela will receive £250,000 of Scottish Government funding following the devastating earthquakes that have struck the country.

The funding will go to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) to help provide shelter, food, water and medical care in the worst-affected areas.

The financial boost comes amid an ongoing humanitarian crisis. Venezuelan authorities have confirmed at least 1,719 people have died and more than 5,000 have been injured following the back-to-back earthquakes on June 24, which caused extensive damage to homes and infrastructure.

Around 12,000 people have been displaced, and officials have yet to confirm a total figure for the missing.

International development minister Simita Kumar said: “My heart goes out to everyone in Venezuela who has lost their loved ones or their home in the wake of these devastating earthquakes. The scale of suffering is immense, and I am deeply concerned for everyone caught up in the crisis, including the hundreds of thousands of children who most urgently need support.

“Scotland has a proud tradition of standing with communities in their darkest hours and will play its part in supporting the international humanitarian effort in Venezuela. This funding will help get vital assistance to those who need it most.”

The funding arrives at a critical moment for emergency teams.

Conditions remain highly hazardous for rescue workers and citizens combing through the rubble to find survivors, with approximately 500 aftershocks recorded so far, including a magnitude 5.2 tremor on Monday morning.

Rescue efforts in the northern state of La Guaira are also facing the threat of heavy rain from an incoming tropical wave.

Ten of the DEC’s 15 member charities were already operational on the ground in Venezuela, allowing them to deliver immediate basic aid alongside local experts.

Val Brown, head of Christian Aid in Scotland and spokesperson for the DEC Scotland Appeal, said: “This is an unimaginably difficult time for the people affected by the earthquake. From the terror and chaos of the earthquakes to the ongoing anguish of missing or injured loved ones. People are coming to terms with the fact that their whole lives have changed in seconds. Many have lost their homes and belongings, whole neighbourhoods have been destroyed.

“Many of DEC’s member charities were already working in Venezuela so are able to work well with local and national experts. They responded immediately by delivering basic aid from the very beginning – food, water, emergency medical care. But so much more is needed now and in the coming days and weeks.

“We’d like to thank the Scottish Government for their generous support for this latest appeal, the 80th we’ve launched in the DEC’s 60 year history. We hope the £250,000 they have provided will encourage people from all over Scotland to dig deep and help make a difference right now.”