Islamabad: UNHCR’s Representative in Pakistan, Neill Wright, has lauded the outstanding and unprecedented role of the UAE under the leadership of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in improving the difficult humanitarian conditions faced by the people in Pakistan due to floods and natural disasters.
Wright praised the UAE’s benevolence and march of goodness, laid down by Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, encompassing almost every country in the world, and the legacy continued by Shaikh Khalifa under the system of charitable and humanitarian work for the UAE.
In a statement to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), the UNHCR representative said that he is following up with pride and appreciation the projects implemented by the UAE in Pakistan as per the directives and initiatives of Shaikh Khalifa. One of the pilot projects, the provision of the necessary infrastructure of roads, bridges, schools and hospitals, health centres and basic services and the provision of water for the people of Pakistan, who have faced difficult circumstances over the past years, will guarantee them the means to a decent life.
The UN official expressed the hope of strengthening the partnership and cooperation with the UAE project to help Pakistan alleviate severe shortages of basic necessary services.
He said that the concerted efforts of the UAE and the UNHCR will bring additional gains to the beneficiaries of their programmes in Pakistan and will add a new dimension to their future projects.
In response to a question on UAE Project to Assist Pakistan (UPAP) and the delivery of 49 schools in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and South Waziristan, Wright said that these schools, which were established by the UAE, will always be remembered by the future generations and contribute effectively in the current education system.
He praised the efforts of the UAE in the establishment of the first training and rehabilitation centre for women in Pakistan, which will be an important and necessary addition to improve the condition of the families and women in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He also mentioned the vital projects carried out by the UAE in Pakistan, including Shaikh Zayed Bridge and Shaikh Khalifa Bridge on the Swat river, and Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed road in Waziristan, pointing out that these development projects will help lessen the plight of the people in the affected areas. “These vital projects, especially roads and bridge facilities, are essential for Pakistani people in order to help them to move from one place to another,” he asserted.
The UN official praised the UAE’s continued support for international efforts in eradicating endemic diseases, referring to a campaign to vaccinate 20,000 children against measles and polio in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Regarding the status of internally displaced persons, he added that it depends on the end of the military operations and addressing the negative impacts of natural calamities, pointing out that there are one million Pakistanis who are displaced due to these events, most of them in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He added that the major challenges facing displaced people is that they lack everything, such as food, protection, basic resources and funds as well as the provision of security, and most of them have been subjected to risk.
Wright expressed his hope of continuing to work with the UAE in 2014.
