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| August 3, 2003 | Sunday | Jumadi-us-Sani 4, 1424 |
UN pledges $60,000 aid for flood-hit people
ISLAMABAD, Aug 2: The United Nations Disaster Management Team in Pakistan met on Saturday to review the flood situation in Sindh and Balochistan and decided initially to provide $60,000 assistance.
Fifty thousand dollars will be provided by the UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs while $10,000 by Unicef for the purchase of jerrycans, tents and water purification tablets to the provincial authorities.
UN agencies including the WFP, UNFPA and UNDP hope to mobilize more resources within the next week.
The UNDP is also planning to launch a $100,000 programme to study factors behind the devastation caused by the floods and hopes to identify preventive, remedial and mitigation measures which should provide the basis for the better preparedness and disaster management strategies in near future.
This was decided after the visit of UN Resident Coordinator Onder Yucer who returned on Saturday from Karachi after a visit to Badin and Thatta, having discussions with the political leadership of the province and after the assessment of the flood situation.
A report by the UN Inter-agency Rapid Assessment Mission Team on the situation in Badin and Thatta was also discussed during the meeting of the UN Disaster Management Team.
Mr Yucer said the torrential rains and sea intrusion had submerged Badin and stressed that emergency relief should be coordinated so that food, medicines and basic items should reach the victims in the least time possible.
It was felt that UN relief assistance should be directed towards the district. Supplies of basic medicinal items such as anti-malaria tablets, water purification tablets, ORS sachets, anti-snake venom and other emergency supplies need to be distributed immediately.
The UN system is assisting the district authorities to provide relief to the worst-affected regions with food, shelter in the form of tents and basic cooking utensils.
It was also decided that a team comprising representatives of the UNDP, Unicef, WHO and WFP would work in Thatta and Badin to ensure the relief assistance was undertaken in a coordinated and efficient manner.
It was felt that there was also a need to monitor the situation very carefully over the next 10 days to deal effectively with both the immediate and longer term needs of the people of Tharparkar and Thatta, including the 270, 000 people who have been made homeless in Badin alone.
Mr Onder Yucer said that any relief must be distributed directly at district level to reduce delays in necessary items reaching the needy. The UN system is working with the local government, district administration and the army.
He reaffirmed UN commitment to provide humanitarian assistance to prevent the outbreak of diseases and provide shelter and food to the victims of the flood.—APP
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