GENEVA (AFP) - More than 5.8 million dollars in emergency aid for victims of Myanmar's cyclone Nargis is still to be released by donor countries, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
WHO has reviewed emergency aid following May's devastating storm and now puts the amount needed at more than 12.8 million dollars.
Donor countries -- including Australia, Britain, Denmark, Italy, Monaco, Norway, Romania and the United States have already released seven million dollars for the aid effort, a WHO spokesperson told journalists.
Australia has committed an extra 30 million dollars (29 million US) to Myanmar cyclone relief, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Wednesday.
The pledge almost doubles the funds Australia has provided since Cyclone Nargis slammed into the southeast Asian nation in early May, leaving about 138,000 people dead or missing.
"This assistance will help those in greatest need, in particular women, children and the displaced," Smith said in a statement.
In total, aid to Nargis victims and reconstruction will cost a billion dollars, WHO and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said on Monday.
It is estimated that a little over a billion dollars is needed over the next three years with priorities including food, agriculture, and housing as well as assistance to restore livelihoods, they said in a statement.
Myanmar's ruling generals attracted worldwide condemnation after the cyclone for blocking entry to many foreign aid workers and relief shipments, relenting only after a personal visit by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
The disaster left at least 138,000 missing or dead.
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