UK to provide £10 million for thousands fleeing unrest in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: The UK Secretary of State for International Development (DFID), Douglas Alexander has announced that the UK will provide urgent humanitarian assistance to help the 1,000,000 people displaced by the fighting in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and the North West Frontier Province (including the SWAT region) of Pakistan.
The £10 million will help the work of humanitarian aid agencies who are working in the region most affected by recent fighting, the British High Commission. The aid agencies will provide food, water and shelter to those most in need, as well as facilitating access to basic sanitation and healthcare.
Secretary of State for International Development Douglas Alexander said:
“The UK is deeply concerned for the wellbeing of what estimates suggest could soon be over a million and a half people displaced by this conflict. A mass movement of people of this scale poses huge humanitarian challenges. “The international community has an obligation to help the Pakistani government meet the urgent humanitarian needs of those most directly affected by the ongoing insecurity. The UK stands ready to assist the Government of Pakistan to combat the shared threat of violent extremism and we remain strongly committed to our partnership with the people of Pakistan.”
DFID is providing £665 million of assistance to Pakistan from 2009 to 2013. By 2011, it will be the UK’s second largest development programme worldwide, committing £250 million over five years to help put more children into school, improve teaching and provide the skills young people need to get jobs.
The UK is committed to continuing to help Pakistan fight poverty and is providing £665 million of assistance to Pakistan from 2009 to 2013. The £10 million in humanitarian assistance forms part of our aid framework. It builds on £2 million in humanitarian assistance provided in November 2008.
The money is now being programmed to aid agencies operational on the ground. Douglas Alexander will be meeting President Zadari of Pakistan on Thursday 14th May. NNI
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