PESHAWAR: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Tuesday inaugurated Humanitarian Response Facility (HRF) in Jalozai, Nowshera district.

A statement said that Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, WFP Regional Director for Asia David Kaatrud and WFP Pakistan Representative Lola Castro jointly inaugurated the facility. It is the fifth such facility in the country.

Ambassador of Denmark Jasper Moller Sorensen and Honorary Consul General of Japan Nawabzada Fazal Karim Afridi were also present on this occasion.

“The subsequent chain of unfortunate events in the last seven to eight years has exposed the province to extreme challenges including an excessive burden on the existing response capability of the government and PDMA in particular.

This humanitarian response facility will be utilised to further prepare the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to serve the communities in need,” said the chief minister.

The WFP, Pakistan and international donors have been working together since 2013 to establish a network of humanitarian hubs in eight strategic locations across the country, as part of broader emergency preparedness activities, according to the statement.

The state-of-the-art relief hubs will allow disaster management authorities in Pakistan to respond more swiftly and efficiently to a sudden emergency. Hubs have already been inaugurated in Quetta, Muzaffargarh, Lahore and Hyderabad.

“The effects of global climate change resulting in unpredictable weather patterns and extreme climatic conditions have also impacted Pakistan. Women and children are especially vulnerable in the face of disaster,” said Lola Castro.

The response facility worth $ 3.5 million in Peshawar covers more than 28,300 square metres. It features four large warehouses for general cargo and two smaller, climate-controlled warehouses for more sensitive items such as medicines and ready-to-use foods, as well as office space and staff facilities.

There is enough covered storage space for 88,000 50 kilograms bags and over three times as much open storage space.

“Just recently we’ve seen the value of a very similar response facility in Nepal, where a logistics hub at Kathmandu airport is helping WFP and the whole humanitarian community reaches earthquake survivors with life saving assistance,” said David Kaatrud.

The government has provided land to WFP to build the humanitarian facilities in eight of the country’s most disaster-prone areas. The government is responsible for the management and staffing of the facilities.

The WFP provides training for staff in managing the facilities, as well as in humanitarian supply chain and emergency response. The project is being implemented in coordination with national and provincial disaster management authorities, with funding provided by Japan, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Denmark and the United States of America.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play