Continued aid needed for 500,000 displaced in northwest

Continuing assistance is required for 500,000 displaced people in northwest Rwanda. They are living without proper shelter, access to clean water, adequate medical services and opportunities to farm their land, a statement from OCHA-Rwanda received by IRIN said. It warned that children, women heads of households, elderly and handicapped, figure prominently among the displaced. Their special needs must be met, in addition to those of the general displaced population, the statement said. It added that large movements of people into and out of temporary camps in the region is continuing. UN agencies have provided advice to the government on the dispersion and improved management of the temporary camps.