Wednesday, 31 August, 2022 I 3 Safar, 1444 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XIII No 62 I 12 Pages I Islamabad Edition
UN issUes $160m flash appeal as pakistaN grapples with worst floods iN history g
ovER 30 MIllIon PEoPlE In 72 DISTRIcTS oF coUnTRy ADvERSEly AFFEcTED, SAyS bIlAwAl
ISLAMABAD
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staff report
hE United nations (Un) on Tuesday appealed to the international community for $160 million in emergency aid to provide relief to the victims of floods in Pakistan. Un Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, speaking through a video link during the 2022 Pakistan Floods Response Plan (FRP) event, said infrastructure in the affected areas of Pakistan was destroyed by the floods and the country was in dire need of help from the international community to help those affected. he said Pakistan is in need of $160 million in aid for the flood victims, adding that greenhouse gases are causing an increase in global warming. During the ceremony, Minister of Foreign Affairs bilawal bhutto Zardari also appealed for emergency assistance to Pakistan during these times of distress. he added that due to climate change, heat waves have broken all records in Pakistan and now the country is facing heavy
rainfall and flooding. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairperson said more than 30 million people in 72 districts of the country are currently affected by the catastrophe, while systems of communication and crops have been destroyed and the economy has taken a significant hit. “Providing food, a roof and rehabilitation to the victims is a big challenge,” bilawal said, adding that the benazir Income Support Programme has also been helping the affected families. Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal also spoke at the event as he is the chairperson of the “Relief coordination committee” constituted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Un high commissioner for Refugees, Un Resident coordinator in Islamabad, and the Assistant Secretary General of the International Federation of Red cross and Red crescent Societies (IFRc) were also in attendance. “The launch event will be attended by all Un Member States as well as various Un agencies and humanitarian organizations working in the area of disaster relief. The FRP
will acknowledge the Government’s overall humanitarian response to the recent floods caused by unprecedented rains in Pakistan,” the Fo had stated earlier. Initially, authorities in Pakistan were slow to react but the latest reports from the troubled regions indicate the damage caused by current floods is far greater than the super floods of 2010. Unprecedented flash floods caused by historic monsoon rains have washed away roads, crops, infrastructure and bridges, killing at least 1,000 people in recent weeks and affecting more than 33 million. on Monday, climate Minister Sherry Rehman and meteorologists told the AP that new monsoons were expected in September. Monsoons have hit earlier and more heavily than usual since the start of summer, officials say — most recently with massive rains last week that affected nearly the entire country. Pakistan is accustomed to monsoon rains and flooding, Rehman said, but not like this. Several scientists say the record-breaking flooding in Pakistan has all the hallmarks of a catastrophe juiced by climate change, but it is too early to formally assign blame to global warming. “This year Pakistan has received the highest rainfall in at least three decades. So far this year the rain is running at more than 780 percent above average levels,” said Abid Qaiyum Suleri, executive director of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute and a member of Pakistan’s climate change council. “Extreme weather patterns are turning more frequent in the region and Pakistan is not an exception.” Pakistan saw similar flooding and devastation in 2010 that killed nearly 2,000 people. but the government didn’t implement plans to prevent future flooding by preventing construction and homes in flood-prone areas and river beds, said Suleri of the climate change council. Floods and monsoon rains have damaged one million houses and affected 33 million people. It reflects how poorer countries often pay the price for climate change largely caused by more industrialised nations. Since 1959, Pakistan is responsible for only 0.4 percent of the world’s historic co2 emissions. The US is responsible for 21.5 percent, china for 16.5 percent and the EU for 15 percent.
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PM stresses making Pakistan self-sufficient through economic reforms ISLAMABAD staff report
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday while linking the revival of International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme critical to Pakistan’s economy, stressed upon breaking of economic straitjacket through structural reforms. on his Twitter handle, the prime minister said that the IMF programme offered a pathway
to re-orient Pakistan’s economy and underlined that they would have to work hard to become self-sufficient. “Revival of IMF program, though critical to our economy, is not an end in itself. It offers a pathway to reorient our economy. we will have to work hard to make it self-sufficient. Pakistan must break out of economic straitjacket, which is only possible through structural reforms,” the prime minister posted in tweet.
Floods cost at least $10b in losses, says planning minister
PESHAWAR/QUETTA reuters
balochistan has suffered hundreds of millions of dollars in economic damage due to devastation from flooding as damage to highways hampers relief efforts, the chief minister said on Monday. In the north, residents and officials said villages were almost entirely cut off from the rest of the country due to destruction wrought by heavy rains. The unusually strong monsoon rains have caused devastating floods in large swathes of the country, affecting more than 30 million people and killing more than 1,000, and straining official relief and rescue efforts. Mir Abdul Qudoos bizenjo, the chief minister of balochistan, told reporters the province had suffered more than Rs200 billion ($900 million) worth of damage from the more than two months of flooding. “we are facing a lack of financial resources, tents and other relief goods and connectivity as all major highways are badly damaged […] hampering our relief efforts,” he said, adding that his province needed more help from federal government departments to cope. The foreign minister told Reuters on Sunday the country needs financial help to deal with “overwhelming” floods, adding that he hoped financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would take the economic fallout into account. Some initial analyses by economists have put the cost of the damage at $4 billion, though the foreign minister said it was likely higher. britain’s Queen Elizabeth on Monday said in a message of support to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif: “My thoughts are with all those who have been affected, as well as those working in difficult circumstances to support the recovery efforts.” In kyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Swat valley — home to millions of people — was largely cut off from the rest of the country due to damaged infrastructure and flood waters. local residents said food and medicine was running out and they had little access to power. Pakistan has appealed for international support and some countries including Turkey have sent supplies and a rescue team.
Rupee recoups losses against greenback after IMF deal g
PAkISTAn wIll Soon REcEIvE $1.17b AFTER IMF’S ExEcUTIvE boARD APPRovAl oF SEvEnTh AnD EIGhTh TRAnchE ISLAMABAD staff report
The Pakistani rupee appreciated by almost three rupees against the US dollar in the interbank market on Tuesday morning mainly because the International Monetary Fund (IMF) revived the much-awaited bailout programme. According to details, the rupee appreciated to 219 against the US dollar compared to the previous close of
221.92 per USD. The rupee’s recovery comes after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the seventh and eighth reviews of Pakistan’s Extended Fund Facility Programme (EFF). The Fund announced that the executive board completed the combined seventh and eighth reviews of the “extended arrangement” under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Pakistan. “The board’s decision allows for an
immediate disbursement of SDR 894 million (about $1.1 billion), bringing total purchases for budget support under the arrangement to about $3.9 billion,” the statement read. The economic growth rate of Pakistan in this fiscal year is expected to be 3.5 per cent, unemployment in the country is likely to be 6 percent, and government expenditure during this fiscal year are estimated at 17.1 per cent of GDP.