Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie supports Chad

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 9 March 2004, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie has urged individuals and corporations to donate funds to UNHCR's effort to help an estimated 110,000 refugees who have fled Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region for neighbouring Chad. The American actress announced she was donating $50,000 for life-saving water projects in the arid areas of Chad and urged others to follow suit. Most of the refugees from Darfur are accommodated in arid desert areas and supplying clean water to them is a costly and logistically complicated venture.

Angelina Jolie is the first individual to make a major private donation to UNHCR's Chad emergency. To date, UNHCR has received $7.5 million for the Chad emergency in government donations. The largest contribution, of $5 million, comes from the United States. This year, UNHCR will need a total of $20.7 million to handle the Darfur/Chad situation. We much appreciate Ms. Jolie's continuing support for our work.

Story date: 9 March 2004
UNHCR Briefing Notes