UNHCR hands over thousands of tents, other emergency relief items to Sindh government

Karachi: UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency has handed over thousands of tents and other emergency relief items to the Sindh government which will benefit hundreds of thousands of flood-affected people in the province.

The first three of nine scheduled flights arrived on Monday in Pakistan – with the other six scheduled this week. UNHCR trucks carrying relief items are also on the road from Uzbekistan, with more convoys scheduled. Emergency relief items are being transported from Peshawar which has already reached Sukkur Humanitarian Response Facilities.

A total of 18,800 tents, 310,000 blankets, 76,000 buckets, 56,500 jerrycans, 67,500 plastic tarpaulins, 112,000 Sleeping mats, 150,000, mosquito nets, 140,000 Solar Lamps, 24,700 kitchen sets, 32,000 Sanitary napkins, 4,500 Soap and 3,500 Dignity Kits are being given to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority in Sindh province.

UNHCR’s Assistant Representative for Protection, Leyla Nugmanova called on the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah. The CM’s team briefed the UNHCR officials about the current situation in various flood-affected districts and damage it caused.

The UNHCR Representative and Director General of PDMA, Syed Salman Shah signed a memorandum to handover the items for immediate distribution to people affected by the floods.

The Sindh chief minister welcomed UNHCR’s contribution, terming it timely and important as needs are massive. The world is yet to understand the scale of this disaster and devastation by floods.

“UNHCR is lending all possible support to Pakistan in this hour of need,’’ said Leyla Nugmanova, UNHCR Assistant Representative for Protection in Pakistan.

“Based on our forty years of partnership and Pakistan’s extraordinary generosity for refugees, we cannot let the country and its people handle this colossal tragedy alone. The world has to understand what the people in Pakistan are going through and has to step in to help fast,” she added.

UNHCR has been part of the monsoon response since July when the agency started to provide relief items and assistance for refugees and host communities. In addition, UNHCR directly provided tents to the flood affected refugees and host communities through its partners.