DROUGHT - PAKISTAN
UPDATE No. 1
3rd May 2000
Joint UN System Briefing on Drought
Continuing with the efforts to coordinate information and action on drought facing Southwestern Pakistan and Southern Afghanistan, the UN system in Pakistan and the UN Humanitarian Agencies of Afghanistan organized a joint briefing on Drought. The briefing was well attended by representatives of donor community, Resident missions as well as NGOs. The briefing presented an opportunity for the participants to share information on the ongoing efforts being undertaken and support that is required.
The UN Pakistan team presented an overview of the situation in Pakistan, the UN response and future course of action. Mr. John Powell, Country Director WFP and Mr. Aboul Naga Representative FAO, who had come back from a meeting with Governor of Balochistan a day earlier, shared information on the drought and the Government response to managing the situation. Mr. Powell said that the rains are usually expected around July in Balochistan, and if the rains start the situation will improve to some extent. He said that the situation over the next ten weeks is critical, as it would determine if the situation actually worsens or improves. This period, he said is a good time for planning and strategizing measures/actions, in case of worsening situation.
The UN assessment mission report on the Aranji Tehsil, Khuzdar District Balochistan was referred to as an informative document on the situation in Aranji, one of the worst affected areas. However, it was shared that the arrangements to undertake an assessment of the drought in Pakistan are currently being finalized. The joint WFP and FAO mission should be able to complete the assessment in the next three weeks. The UN team will formulate the action strategy on the basis of the findings and recommendations of the assessment.
The open discussion following the presentations referred to the involvement of the local level organizations in managing and mitigating the situation, especially in Balochistan and Sindh. The coordination at Federal level was also highlighted. Mr. Yucer responding to involvement at Federal level said that the Ministry of Finance and the Economic Affairs Division are in the information loop and monitoring the situation closely. A participant also raised a question on the government's ability to mobilize the army and its resources for handling the situation. Mention was also made of the Government of Balochistan's assistance appeal for 40 drought relief centers to UNDP.
Referring to the need of establishing an information contact group, Mr. Yucer referred to the Disaster Management Team as the first contact for any information /questions related to drought.
UN Press Conference on Drought
In view of the increasing information requests from media, a press conference was held at UN Information Center on 2 May 2000, to allow the UN agencies to highlight the situation in drought affected areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Senior officials representing UN system lead by Mr. Onder Yucer, UN Resident Coordinator, Mr. John Powell, Country Director WFP, Mr. M. Aboul Naga Representative FAO and Mr. Hasim Utkan Representative of UNHCR briefed the correspondents. Mr. Yucer said that there was sufficient evidence to indicate that we have a critical situation. He expressed confidence in the Pakistani authorities ability to deal with the situation at present. Mr. Yucer however, appealed to his UN colleagues "to look into their pen channels on how to provide initial humanitarian assessment assistance, be it food or non-food items".
Other information sources
Information on drought in Pakistan can be accessed at the following web sites:
Also attached is a map received from a GIS Expert of our Balochistan Area Development Programme, based on visual interpretation of satellite images (NOAA AVHRR) and climatic data showing the extent of drought severity in different parts of Balochistan.