GENEVA
The UN refugee agency lacks funds to meet the increasing needs of Syrian and Iraqi refugees, an agency spokeswoman said on Tuesday.
"The shortfall affects our winter preparedness programs for winter aid for Syrian and Iraqi refugees, and for those displaced internally," United Nations High Commission for Refugees spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told a press conference on Tuesday at the UN's Geneva headquarters.
The agency is faced with a $58.45 million funding gap.
"As a result, the agency is being forced to make some very tough choices over whom to prioritize," Fleming warned.
"We have to prioritize in terms of the areas where winter hits first. We have to look at the most vulnerable population, winterize camps, and then consider family profiles, the sick, the newborn," explained Amin Awad, director of the agency's Middle East and North Africa Breau.
Awad said that funding was trickling in slowly, but not fast enough. "The agency is deeply concerned about its ability to meet urgent winter needs."
Some Syrian refugees face their fourth winter away from their homes. This is the first winter for the 1.9 million Iraqis across the country fleeing attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
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