ISLAMABAD: Flash floods and torrential rains in Pakistan have caused the country's worst destruction, devastation, humanitarian crisis, and catastrophe; in response to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's appeal for assistance to help flood victims, international financial institutions and donors have announced assistance totaling more than USD 500 million.
This comes at a time when flash floods caused by floods, cloudbursts, and torrential rains have wreaked havoc in many areas of the nation, covering more than 70% of the land with floodwater, disrupting road, train, and telecommunication systems, millions of acres of standing crops, roads, bridges, and disconnecting land routes, severely impeding relief efforts nationwide.
The Pakistani Prime Minister issued an appeal to foreign financial donors, organisations, and nations to step forward and contribute as soon as possible by providing resources for the rescue and assistance of flood victims. The World Bank announced an emergency aid of USD 350 million in response to the widespread destruction and the appeal of the prime minister.
Naiy Benhassine, the country director for the World Bank, contacted the prime minister to advise him of the bank's impending aid payment.
According to specifics, by the end of this week, the World Bank would have fully disbursed the aid. After estimating the damages, the World Bank would work with Pakistan to develop a detailed strategy for restoring the infrastructure. In addition, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Asia Development Bank (ADB) each provided USD 110 million in relief for flood victims, while UK Aid also announced USD 1.5 million for medium- and long-term programmes for flood victims' rehabilitation.
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