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Foreign affairs minister says government will send a $5m assistance package for affected communities
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World news — Guardian staff
Penny Wong has confirmed the number of Australians missing in the devastating Nepal floods has increased from 35 to 39 and announced a $5m support package.
“We understand at least 39 Australians are among those reported missing. Australian officials are working urgently to confirm their welfare and provide assistance to those affected,” Wong said in a statement on Friday morning.
Speaking on ABC radio on Friday morning, Wong said the four additional Australians missing had been travelling separately to the Himalayan Glacier Adventures tour.
She said a further increase in the number of Australians missing was an “unfortunate possibility”.
Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email “I know this is an extremely distressing time for those who have loved ones unaccounted for and we are thinking of them,” she said.
In her earlier statement, Wong also said the government was “rapidly mobilising consular and humanitarian support in response to the catastrophic floods along the Nepal-China border, including through a $5 million assistance package for affected communities”.
She said the government would send an initial team of three humanitarian response specialists “within the next 48 hours’” to help 20 Australian staff already on the ground.
“The extraordinary scale of this disaster and the remoteness of the affected region mean immense challenges lie ahead for the response and recovery.”
The support package received bipartisan support on Friday morning, with both the opposition leader, Angus Taylor, and Coalition MP Ted O’Brien saying they supported the move.
But David Shoebridge, the Greens’ spokesperson on foreign affairs, told RN Breakfast earlier the Australian commitment of $5m for affected communities in Nepal “won’t come close to touching the sides” of the calamity.
Shoebridge said the Greens were devastated by the sheer disaster in the region, calling it a genuine global tragedy. He went on to RN:
“I think Australia needs to step up and really commit to helping rebuild. This is a country with minimal spare resources. Life is tough in Nepal at most times, but I don’t think $5m comes close to meeting the scale,” he said.
Of the $5m Wong said $2m would go to the World Food Programme, $2m to Australian NGOs through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership “to provide support such as emergency shelter, hygiene kits, blankets, medical support and psychosocial support”, and $1m to the Emergency Action Alliance to support locally-led recovery.
“Australians wishing to donate should visit the Emergency Action Alliance webpage,” Wong said.
The latest update from Nepal police says that 389 people have been confirmed dead, and 466 injured and rescued, in the flooding disaster.
Overnight, former Australian race discrimination commissioner Chin Tan was among members of Nepalese community who gathered at the Australian Nepalese Multicultural Centre to grieve the disaster.
Related: Nepal flash flood: death toll nears 400 amid warning of fresh danger from rising lake water – latest updates
Families gathered for prayers and held a minute’s silence for those lost to the floods, laying candles beside a hand-crafted display of dyed rice reading “pray for Nepal”.
“Today, all Australians are Nepalis, because our grief is yours,” Tan said.
The diaspora was “united in grief, hope and prayer,” secretary of the centre Sudhir Shakya told the event, held northwest of Melbourne.
“Behind every number is a person – a mother, a father, a son, a daughter, a relative, a friend, and someone deeply loved,” he said.
“We understand at least 39 Australians are among those reported missing. Australian officials are working urgently to confirm their welfare and provide assistance to those affected,” Wong said in a statement on Friday morning.
This report is published with credit to theguardian.com. Full available text from the wire is above. Read on theguardian.com →
Source: theguardian.com · Guardian staff. Published 27 Aug 2026, 09:03 pm.
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Hundreds have died or are missing in Wednesday's flooding and landslides on the border of Nepal and Tibet.
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