Japan plans to provide $38.9m aid for flood victims

ISLAMABAD: Japan on Wednesday announced its plan to provide grant assistance of $38.9 million to Pakistan as part of its supplementary budget to deliver life-saving aid to the flood victims.

The announcement made by the Japanese Embassy said, “The unprecedented levels of flooding have triggered a multi-dimensional humanitarian crisis, leaving the affected population with increased health risks and food insecurity, insecure livelihoods, and heightened vulnerabilities to gender-based violence.

“The Government of Japan will support the affected population in various social and economic dimensions in partnership with WHO, UNFPA, FAO, UNDP, UNICEF, WFP, UNWOMEN, UNHCR, and IPPF in Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Punjab provinces, as well as the Capital Territory.

“For the total grant assistance of USD34.2 million, the proposed areas of support include emergency medical assistance, food distribution, agriculture and livestock restoration, livelihood recreation, and gender-based violence risk mitigation and response. For the rapid rollout to vulnerable, these projects will commence in January 2023.”

The Government of Japan will also provide support through JICA, equivalent to $4.7m for recovery from the floods in health, agriculture, education, gender, and resilient disaster management, thereby contributing to “Build Back Better” in Pakistan.

Earlier, in September 2022, Japan provided a $7m emergency grant to address the impact of flash floods.