UNITED NATIONS: The UN General Assembly passed a resolution on Friday expressing its complete solidarity with the flood-stricken Pakistani people and urging the international community to increase humanitarian aid to Pakistan as well as support for rehabilitation and reconstruction in the areas affected by monsoon rains brought on by climate change.
As he highlighted the devastation caused by the raging flood waters and pleaded for international assistance to help Pakistan cope with the catastrophe, Ambassador Munir Akram of Pakistan to the UN said, “Countries, like Pakistan, which confront such climate-induced disasters should not be left to fend for themselves, dependent on the generosity and charity of friends.”
The Pakistani envoy praised UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for his timely visit to Pakistan to personally express his solidarity and meet the victims, saying, “We must build mechanisms that can enable climate-struck countries to access resources to mitigate the impacts of the ever-more-frequent and-more-intense climate disasters and to recover quickly from such disasters.”
In order to improve and strengthen Pakistan’s chances of achieving sustainable development, the resolution also urges member nations, the UN, and humanitarian organisations to “scale up their humanitarian assistance and rehabilitation of Pakistan.” It also encourages them to “continue to work together to address the different needs of affected populations, particularly the most vulnerable.”
In order to sustain the political will to support the medium- and long-term rehabilitation, reconstruction, and risk reduction efforts as well as the adaptation plan led by the Government of Pakistan at all levels, the text “emphasises the need for the international community to maintain its focus beyond the current emergency relief.”
