Rehabilitation of flood victims: US will consider ways to provide more assistance: envoy

ISLAMABAD: The United States Ambassador to Pakistan, Donald Blome, on Tuesday, said that the US government will assess as to how it can contribute and provide more assistance during the next phase of reconstruction and rehabilitation of Pakistan’s flood-affected people committing other than the already committed $53.1 million through the USAID.

The ambassador was talking to the media after the launch of the United States Embassy’s Pakistan Future of Women and Work Initiative jointly with the US-Pakistan Women’s Council (USPWC) in partnership with Texas A&M University, S&P Global, and the US Chamber of Commerce’s US-Pakistan Business Council.

Ambassador Blome said that the US recently announced an additional $ 30 million in humanitarian assistance to support the people affected by severe flooding in Pakistan, adding that the US will assess and consider the ways as to how it can contribute further. He stated that the Biden administration is taking measures to deal with climate change both at home and abroad by allocating $ 3 billion for the purpose.

Earlier, the Pakistan Future of Women and Work Initiative was launched at the event, participated and addressed by State Department’s Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Elizabeth Horst and Ambassador Blome, beside Parliamentary Secretary on Climate Change Naz Baloch, and others.

The launch event highlighted a study on the impact of Covid-19 on women’s workforce participation in Pakistan, which aims to catalyse research, public discourse, and private sector commitments to address gaps facing women amid the ongoing pandemic.

Highlighting the US provision of $53.1 million in humanitarian assistance and resilience programming to support Pakistan in the wake of devastating floods, Ambassador Blome said that just as the Covid-19 pandemic highlights the disproportionate impact on women’s participation in the workforce, the catastrophic flooding in Pakistan is a reminder that women and girls are among the most vulnerable groups during a humanitarian crisis. He said that women in Pakistan is a potential untapped resource which can be utilised for benefiting the country’s economy and assured the US government’s continued support to women’s economic empowerment.

“As the United States works to provide direct assistance to affected communities in Pakistan and to help mitigate the effects of future floods, we will closely consider the unique impacts of the current flooding and other natural disasters on women and girls,” he said.

Speaking on the occasion, the State Department’s Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, Horst, said that through the US-Pakistan Women’s Council, the United States has been working for a decade to build bridges between the people of the two countries to support Pakistan’s sustained prosperity, benefiting thousands of women in Pakistan.

“Today’s initiative helps create a foundation for greater collaboration and exchange between our two countries on women’s economic advancement,” she said, adding that the Council is actively supporting women entrepreneurship in Pakistan.

In her remarks, Naz Baloch thanked the US government and the people for helping Pakistan at this difficult point of time, adding that the recent catastrophic floods have played havoc across one-third of the country, particularly in Sindh. She admitted that women in the country are the neglected and untapped segment of society whose active participation in the country’s progress and the economy is vital. Dr Raymond Robertson, lead author of the study and Director of the Mosbacher Institute for Trade, Economics and Public Policy at Texas A&M University’s Bush School, stated that women the world over bore a larger burden during the Covid-19 crisis than they usually do during economic recessions. Pakistan was no exception. “We intend for our findings to start a conversation and shape investments to help women in the economy thrive,” he stated.

Managing Director of S&P Global in Pakistan Mujeeb Zahur announced that S&P Global will put the data to use by partnering with USPWC to host workshops in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad to foster increased investments in women’s workforce participation.

Through data, dialogue and commitments made by the private sector, he added that the Pakistan Future of Women and Work Initiative will inform government, private sector, and philanthropic dialogue and action to address challenges women are facing in Pakistan’s economy.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022