On the eve of the October 8 earthquake, Michael Jones, the Country Director of World Food Programme (WFP) in Pakistan termed his agency's operation in Azad Kashmir (AJK) and North West Frontier Province (NWFP) as "a big success."
"The objective was to save lives and reduce human suffering. We have had no reported cases of anybody having died or suffered due to lack of food", he said. "We pride ourselves in having done a very good job in a timely and efficient manner".
After launching an emergency operation immediately after this earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, the WFP today is in the recovery phase, preparing to pre-position food at higher elevations ahead of the Himalayan winter which is expected to be harsher this year.
"We would try to reduce migrations that are forced upon people due to lack of subsistence or any means of acquiring food. One of the ways to do that is by pre-positioning food at elevations over 3,000 feet, so that when people do need food they have it available."
However Michael Jones made it clear that food will not be for free. It will be given out as an incentive for training and reconstruction and will be used constructively. He said WFP that launched the largest helicopter operation immediately following the earthquake and will be bringing the choppers again. "We have sufficient funds to run a fleet of 4-5 helicopters from November through February."
He warned that it is not a time for complacency because the winter ahead is expected to be more extreme both in terms of depth of snow and its coverage. He said that WFP is aiming to help people survive the winter with dignity.
"One challenge leads to the other. It was one thing to save lives and to make sure people were provided food, medicine and shelter. It is quite another thing to make sure that they recover their livelihoods." Michael added.
The agency wants people to become self-reliant and is therefore, providing tools and marketable skills to diversify and increase their income base. This will build their resilience and enable them to better cope with recurrent disasters.
Since the earthquake, WFP has been involved in building rural link roads, protection walls, animal shelters, reservoirs and assisting people to reclaim land and increase food production.
During its emergency operation, WFP met the food needs of one million people of which 250,000 were in tented camps, supplementary feeding for as many as 150,000 children less than five years of age, emergency school feeding for a similar number of kids in tented schools and 400,000 people living in the mountains 5,000 feet above sea level also formed part of WFP's epic effort.
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