Norway provides emergency relief to flood victims in Pakistan

Norway will provide NOK 40 million to the flood victims in Pakistan. The situation is critical and the number of victims keeps rising. The country has been hit by extreme rainfall just one year after the worst flood in its history.

Unusually heavy monsoon rain in Pakistan has again caused floods in many of the same areas as last year.

Norwegian Minister of the Environment and International Development Erik Solheim commented, “The situation on the ground is very serious. Several million people are affected in what was already a very poor area. It is always the poorest who are hardest hit.”

About 6 million people are affected in the Sindh and Baluchistan provinces. More than 1 million homes have been completely or partially destroyed.

“It is particularly important to reach the most vulnerable groups. Women, children and the disabled are especially at risk in this chaotic situation. They need help and protection. People have been forced to flee their homes, and there is a great need for tents, food and clean water,” said Mr Solheim.

Norway is now providing NOK 40 million, which will be channelled through the UN, the Red Cross and other NGOs with experience from Pakistan. Norway has already supported Norwegian Church Aid’s efforts to help 2000 families in Sindh province. Norway has supported the development of a water purification unit, which Norwegian Church Aid is now using.

According to the UN, around NOK 2 billion is needed to help the flood victims. Norway is working with other donor countries and the UN to assist the Pakistani authorities in their emergency relief work.

“The emergency response capacity Pakistan has built up since the terrible flood last year will now come into use. The UN is coordinating efforts and the assistance that is now coming in. This will ensure that emergency relief reaches those who need it most in the shortest possible time,” said Mr Solheim.

In addition, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), where Norway is one of the largest donors, will provide funding.

Read more about Norway’s assistance to the flood victims last year here.

Press contacts:

Communications Adviser Anne Vinding (together with Mr. Solheim in New York), mobile phone +47 975 93 944, or the press duty officer for international development, mobile phone: +47 913 95 000 (no text messages).