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UN chief urges world community to ‘urgently’ help flooded Pakistan
UNITED NATIONS : UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday renewed his appeal to the international community to “provide, urgently, humanitarian assistance” to Pakistan which has hit by the worst-ever floods that have uprooted 21 million people. “The United Nations has been mobilising all the international community’s efforts,” he told reporters on his return from a tour of Africa and Europe. “I sincerely hope that we will be able to mobilize more” assistance for the victims of the natural disaster.
The UN chief appeal followed the newly-appointed UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos’s expression of concern and disapppointment over the inadequate response to the world body’s appeal for Pakistan’s flood victims.
“New donations have dropped to just $20 million over the last two weeks,” Ms. Amos, a British national, said on Tuesday in Islamabad, where she spent her first day on the job to witness the humanitarian response to the flood disaster.
Organisations responding to the crisis initially requested $460 million from donors to cover basic needs. So far just $294 million has been received 64 per cent of what is needed.
“It is both worrying and disappointing that this is happening when the needs continue to rise and the suffering is still so evident. I urge donors to dig deeper “we will need their support for months to come,” Ms. Amos had said.
According to UN officials, Ms. Amos was expected to call for about one billion dollars—more than double the amount initially sought, when she will update the UN appeal for Pakistan on Sept. 17. app
Courtesy www.aaj.tv