News
Friday, January 28, 2011
Pakistan still in emergency after floods, says UN
ISLAMABAD: The United Nations said on Thursday that Pakistan is still in an emergency phase six months after floods that ravaged the country, and that $1 billion is still needed to help the 20 million people affected by the floods. “The emergency in Pakistan is not over and a lot of work still needs to be done,” UN’s special envoy for assistance to Pakistan, Rauf Engin Soysal, told a press conference in Islamabad. “Providing early recovery assistance in current humanitarian environment is complex and requires a well-coordinated effort by the humanitarian community and the authorities at federal, provincial and district levels,” the official said. The UN launched a $2 billion flood relief appeal in September 2010, but still requires nearly half that amount, in particular to help farmers return to work after waters smothered a large number of fields and devastated harvests. Soysal said that so far 56.3 percent ($1.1 billion) of the appealed fund had been met, but only 39 percent of essential early recovery projects were funded. He said that more than half of the flood response plan was now covered, but “we are hoping to raise the remaining $1 billion, which is urgently needed”. According to the UN, about seven million people are still living on monthly food rations. staff report/afp
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk