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Three UN agencies collaborate to help flood victims in Pakistan
At least three agencies of the United Nations, including UNHCR, the UN agency for refugees, UNFPA and Unicef have joined forces to improve the safety of host communities and refugees in Pakistan who have been impacted by catastrophic flooding, especially the women and children living there.
The agreement which is expected to continue all through 2023, is aimed at facilitating the transfer of resources from one UN entity to another to reach the most affected communities under the “One-UN” arrangement.
According to reports, thousands of people have been displaced, while others have returned to their homes and towns to find their homes destroyed and key water, sanitation and health infrastructure non-existent, following the flooding that wreaked havoc in Pakistan.
In Sindh, some affected communities can only be reached by boat, their continued isolation compounding their needs, forcing families to make impossible choices.
Both child marriage and violence against children have increased in some of the most affected districts and as the climate crisis is ratcheting up, extreme weather is wearing down the resilience of communities in the country hit by repeated disasters, including in terms of protection.
Findings from assessments indicate that in Sindh, the most affected province, 85 per cent of key informants indicated that their community members did not have knowledge of gender-based violence services, more than 50pc are experiencing psycho-social distress and 60pc were not accessing treatment.
“The scale of destruction after the floods is huge, and protection needs among children and women are still growing,” said UNHCR Representative to Pakistan, Noriko Yoshida. “Together our partnership with UNFPA and Unicef will strengthen the collective response, as part of UN-wide efforts,”.
Planned joint activities with Unicef include the distribution of 250,000 dignity kits for women and girls of reproductive age, child protection activities and mental health awareness campaigns and community-based activities, bolstering the capacity of District Child Protection Units with caseworkers and psychologists, in addition to mapping available services in affected communities with a particular focus on survivors of violence for case referrals and adequate response.
The UNFPA activities include the distribution of 20,000 dignity kits, establishing and strengthening Gender-Based Violence (GBV) referral mechanisms of cases, setting up and operating women and girls’ friendly spaces to reduce risks and prevent further harm during and after the emergency, community mobilisation and outreach campaigns for GBV awareness and sensitisation among community members, mapping of available services for survivors, enhancing skills of front-line GBV staff assisting communities, as well as lifesaving GBV response services such as health, psycho-social support, case management and referrals for GBV survivors.
Dr Luay Shabaneh, the UNFPA representative in Pakistan said that UNFPA’s priority is to ensure women and girls have access to lifesaving reproductive health and protection services even in the midst of an emergency.
Jubilant supporters celebrated Donald Trump’s apparent victory in Florida early Wednesday as he claimed a return to the White House, despite most major news networks holding off on officially calling the race.
At an event in Palm Beach, Trump supporters reveled in the win projected by Fox News, cheering as the former president declared a “political victory that our country has never seen before.”
“I feel extraordinary,” said 68-year-old supporter Ted Sarvanis, dancing with arms in the air. “This is the greatest American political story in the history of the country.”
Joined by running mate J.D. Vance, Trump took the stage, celebrating his projected win. The atmosphere at the convention center was electric, with supporters sporting “Make America Great Again” caps and mingling in formal attire and Trump-themed clothing.
“I feel relieved. I was a little bit scared because you never know how things are going to turn out,” said Stacy Kurtz, 45.
In contrast, a far different scene unfolded for Vice President Kamala Harris’s supporters at Howard University in Washington, where they were hoping for a Democratic win.
As the night wore on and Trump gained electoral votes in key battleground states, disappointment swept through the crowd.
“I am scared, I am anxious now,” said Charlyn Anderson earlier in the evening.
Democratic watch parties in places like Atlanta and Pennsylvania grew somber as results rolled in, with Lynn Johnson, 65, expressing concern, “It’s going to be dangerous if he wins. I don’t feel safe.”
While Trump’s supporters celebrated a comeback, the mood among Democrats was marked by worry and disbelief.
“He’s a terrible candidate, so it just doesn’t make sense,” said Harris supporter Ken Brown.
The contrasting scenes highlighted the nation’s deep political divide on election night.
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday vowed to strengthen his country’s “ironclad bond” with the United States as he congratulated Donald Trump, who claimed victory in the US election.
“Congratulations to President @realDonaldTrump on your historic return to the White House… I look forward to working with you to strengthen the ironclad bond between our peoples, to build a future of peace and security for the Middle East, and to uphold our shared values,” Herzog said in a statement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting a summit of the BRICS inter-governmental organisation in the city of Kazan from Tuesday to Thursday.
The summit brings together 24 heads of state and government and is seen by Putin as part of an initiative to create a new world order to end the dominance of the U.S…
Prominent among the guests was Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Representatives from a total of 32 countries would attend.
The original members of BRICS are, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have been joined by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran among others.
The status of Saudi Arabia is yet unclear.
Russia, which currently chairs the organisation, announced that Saudi Arabia would be accepted as a member country at the start of the year.
But there has been no confirmation from Riyadh, and Saudi Arabia would be represented at the summit by its foreign minister.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Saudi Arabia’s status would be cleared up at the summit.
Turkey is to participate as an interested party.
Speaking ahead of the summit, Putin said a central aim would be promoting financial cooperation and providing an alternative to the SWIFT network, through which international payments are routed.
Many Russian banks were banned from the network after its invasion of Ukraine.
Setting up a joint bank is also on the BRICS agenda.
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