And the Singapore government is donating ..... $25,600?
That's less than the price of one C.O.E.
Surely this must set some kind of international record. For stingy-ness. This could be the smallest sum ever donated by one sovereign nation, to another sovereign nation, for a humanitarian cause.
I wonder if the government of Sri Lanka feels insulted.
One single primary school like Anglo-Chinese School could probably raise three times that amount in a week, just by asking parents for donations.
$25,600 flood aid for Sri Lanka
TODAY 05:55 AM Jan 21, 2011
SINGAPORE - The Government is contributing US$20,000 ($25,600) in aid to flood-stricken Sri Lanka, the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement yesterday.
Floods and mudslides in Sri Lanka over the past several days have reportedly killed 40 people and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless.
The MFA said the money will go towards post-flood rehabilitation efforts undertaken by Mercy Relief.
The humanitarian organisation will be distributing water filtration units for fresh drinking water to those affected by the floods.
President S R Nathan had earlier sent a letter to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to express his sympathies to the people and government of Sri Lanka over the loss of life and destruction caused by the floods, the MFA said.
Meanwhile, international humanitarian group Save the Children warned that the damage to agricultural land and loss of livestock is so serious that it could leave up to a million people - including 400,000 children - without enough food.