Thailand began today delivering humanitarian aid to people in Myanmar affected by internal fighting between the governing junta and ethnic groups.

The Thai Red Cross branch in Mae Sot handed over 4,000 relief bags, containing rice, dried food and other essentials for about 20,000 people, to the chairman of the Myanmar Red Cross Society in Myawaddy district.

The hand-over ceremony was witnessed by Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, as well as representatives of local authorities and communities of Tak and Myanmar’s Kayin State, according to the Thai Foreign Ministry.

The Executive Director of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) also attended the ceremony.

Convoys carrying the humanitarian assistance then departed from the second Thailand-Myanmar Friendship Bridge in Tak’s Mae Sot district in Thailand, destined for three pilot distribution locations in the Kayin State for distribution.

The AHA Centre will provide technical support for the monitoring of the distribution, working with with local partners, to ensure it is effective, credible and transparent.

The handover is a bilateral initiative between Thailand and Myanmar, to meet the needs of displaced people in Myanmar.

This pilot project symbolises the goodwill of Thais towards the Myanmar people, the Thai Foreign Ministry said.

Its success is the result of close cooperation between the Thai and Myanmar Red Cross Societies and local communities in Tak and Kayin State.

Building on this pilot phase, Thailand will work closely with relevant parties on ways to increase humanitarian assistance, especially for those living near the Thai-Myanmar border.