In yet another controversy over the provision of humanitarian aid, United Nations auditors are questioning the disposition of millions of dollars doled out to nongovernment organizations (NGOs) reportedly doing humanitarian work in Somalia.
The U.N.'s Office of Internal Oversight Services found the coordinating agency's overall performance for managing the Common Humanitarian Fund for Somalia was “unsatisfactory,” meaning that “critical and/or pervasive important deficiencies exist,” reports Fox News.
Why should this concern the United States? Because as with most U.N. funding, the U.S. is the largest contributor, giving $207.6 million or nearly 38 percent of the total sum donated to the coordinated appeal last year, Fox says.
The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs insists it maintained meticulous records along with a system of reporting on “achievements against planned activities and outcomes.” Nevertheless, OCHA refused to provide Fox with a list of U.N. agencies and NGOs involved with the humanitarian fund over the course of the U.N. audit, citing security concerns.
Never mind that a list of projects and, in some cases, the names of implementing partners appear on the agency's website, Fox found.
Indeed, the situation in Somalia is dire, which all the more should prompt U.S. inquiries into the disposition of its aid.
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