Australia is willing to provide technical knowledge and support in drought mitigation and water conservation in Pakistan, especially in Balochistan and parts of interior Sindh. This was stated by Australian High Commissioner in Pakistan Margaret Adamson, who called on Chairman NDAM, Lieutenant General Muhammad Afzal in Islamabad on Monday. Ms Adamson visited the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) along with her team and representatives of World Food Programme (WFP).
While welcoming Australian High Commissioner in his office, Chairman NDMA Lieutenant General Muhammad Afzal appreciated Australia's humanitarian efforts in Pakistan. He specially praised the standards of education and research at Australian Universities and noted that Pakistan and Australia could devise a mechanism for research and data sharing in areas of Climate Change, Disaster Management and Risk Mitigation. While emphasizing on the long-term interventions, he said that rather than focusing on short-term relief and rehabilitation efforts, Disaster Management needed sustainable intervention for longer periods of time to build resilience and mitigate the vulnerabilities. He also highlighted that Community involvement was vital for Disaster Management, which could be ensured through strengthening District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs).
The visiting High Commissioner congratulated Chairman NDMA on his new appointment and expressed her desire to exchange knowledge and experiences and expand cooperation between the two countries for the long-term sustainable partnership in the areas of disaster risk mitigation.-PR
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