The international donors' conference on the tsunami aid opens here Tuesday afternoon, which appeals for all countries present to make more donations for the tsunami-affected countries.

The meeting, which drew more than 250 representatives from nearly 100 nations, international and regional organizations, non-governmental organizations, was preceded by one minute of silence for the disaster victims.

Jan Egeland, UN emergency relief coordinator, who chairs the meeting, said:" the sheer scale, speed and global reach of the catastrophe of 26 December are unprecedented, and still difficult to comprehend now, a little more than two weeks later."

"More than 60 nations from around the globe have pledged extraordinary levels of money, and provided in-kind assistance, manpower, and much-needed equipment for the relief efforts," he said.

He said that although the total grant aid so far recorded now amount to more than 3 billion US dollars, only about 300 million dollars has so far been committed.

He urged donors to contribute more.

"We highly commend your extraordinary generosity during this crisis. Stay with us also for the long haul. We need your help for reconstruction efforts as well as early warning, prevention, mitigation and disaster preparedness measures when the eye of the television screen has focused elsewhere," he said.

The meeting, first of its kind, will last for some three hours and speakers will make short presentations at the conference. 

(Xinhua News Agency January 12, 2005)