Deputy Prime Minister Louis Grech today represented Malta in a high-level conference on the Syria humanitarian crisis in London, which paved the way for a wide-ranging discussion about how the international community responds to the protracted crisis.
The conference was co-hosted by the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel, the Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, British Prime Minister David Cameron, and the United Nations Secretary-General BAN Ki-moon. The majority of the 60 countries which attended were represented by their prime ministers.
When he addressed the conference, Mr Grech said that he hoped the conference "will result in an ambitious recovery plan for Syria which would complement a much needed yet elusive political solution which would bring back dignity, stability and humanity to Syria."
He said that the prolonged conflict and its humanitarian consequences are a primary cause of vulnerability and the forced displacements to neighbouring countries and to Europe. "We need to reinforce our commitment to end the bloodshed and stem the suffering of the Syrian people, and allow unconditional and unimpeded access for aid convoys to alleviate the humanitarian plight of the Syrian people," he added.
The United Nations was looking for some $7.7bn whereas approximately $1.3bn were being requested by regional host governments, including Turkey and Lebanon. In the course of the conference, Malta joined various other countries in pledging monies to provide humanitarian and other assistance to Syria and neighbouring countries.
Earlier, a coalition of more than 90 humanitarian and human rights groups meeting on the fringes of the Conference - including Amnesty International, Oxfam and the Malala Foundation - had called for better access to jobs and education for refugees in Syria and neighbouring states.
As the crisis enters its sixth year and ongoing suffering reaches historic proportions in scale and intensity, warring parties continue to commit war crimes, including besiegement and targeting of civilians. Some 13.5 million people inside Syria are in need of emergency relief and, on average, 50 Syrian families have been uprooted from their homes every hour of every day since the conflict began in 2011.