About 15 executives from the African business community yesterday presented donations to the Red Cross Society to help tsunami victims.

The group came from six western African countries _ Nigeria, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Senegal and Mali. They were all businessmen who have been living in Thailand for several years.

``All of us are living here with families and friends. We believe we are also part of Thailand and we want to share our grief with the nation,'' said Adebayo Gbadebo, a Nigerian who owns an international trading company in Bangkok.

Mr Gbadebo said he has lived in Thailand for six years. He has a Thai wife and a three-year-old daughter.

Moses Adam, from Ghana, said after Thailand was hit by the tsunamis, residents of the six African communities had decided to join together to show their sympathy for the victims as well as to offer them assistance to ease their suffering.

Their donations included 20 tonnes of rice and 6,000 litres of water.

Chernor Jalloh, a garment exporter from Guinea, said although he does not have a Thai family, he has worked with many people here and felt a very close bond with Thailand.

He said was very sad at the tragedy that had struck the country and wanted to show his sympathy.

``This is not to show we've got a lot.We're not rich but we want to show that we're sharing with the Thai people.''

The group said they decided to donate rice because it is the staple food and is exactly what the victims need.