Vanuatu people lack clean water, month after cyclone - UNICEF

The nited Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday more than 100,000 people in Vanuatu have no clean drinking water, a month after a great cyclone struck the nation.

In a telephone conversation with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, Ketsamay Rajphangthong, chief of UNICEF Vanuatu field office said: "There is water but quality is not that good because of the contamination. When the water is contaminated there's lots of risks coming after that, especially diarrhea and also other forms of disease."

The cyclone occurred on March 13, leaving 11 dead and affecting the majority of the 252,800 Vanuatu population.

Rajphangthong said UNICEF needs $1.5 million for it to successfully render aid to the nation.

"We are still trying to talk to donors and different governments so we can get the additional funds so we can really finish the renovation of (damaged) facilities because this is very urgent".