CERF allocates almost $ 2 million for the populations affected by Balochistan Earthquake in Pakistan

17 November 2008: A powerful earthquake struck Baluchistan province in south-western Pakistan on 29 October, bringing added hardship to an area already suffering from some of the country’s lowest health and social indicators. With the harsh winter approaching, a quick response was required to assist the tens of thousands of victims of the earthquake.

CERF provided $2 million in quick emergency funding for seven relief agencies. The multi-sector relief effort includes logistics support, education for children who lost their schools, and the provision of healthcare, hygiene, food and shelter. 




[Last update: 31 December 2008] 

CERF allocates $9.2 million for emergency food and health assistance in Pakistan

3 September 2008: Spiraling food prices in Pakistan threaten the food security of vulnerable low-income groups. The North West Frontier Province (NWFP) is the worst-affected region, where malnutrition and starvation are very real threats. In response, CERF has allocated nearly $3 million in emergency funding to address immediate food, agriculture and health needs.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is teaming up with the World Food Programme (WFP) thanks to a $2.2 million CERF grant to assist some 48,000 food insecure farming households cope as a result of declining agricultural production and the unprecedented surge in food prices. WFP will take care of their immediate food needs while FAO provides much-needed agricultural inputs (seeds, fertilizers) so that they can cover their food requirements over the coming year.

A $500,000 CERF grant will allow the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to address the nutritional and health needs of 17,500 malnourished children and pregnant/lactating women. With a $275,000 CERF grant, the World Health Organization (WHO) will support emergency health care services for up to 140,000 vulnerable people, with a focus on children, the elderly, and pregnant and lactating women.

Recent conflict and flooding in NWFP and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) have combined to displace hundreds of thousands of people. To meet the immediate needs of those most affected, the CERF has allocated nearly $7 million in emergency funding. Six UN agencies (FAO, UNHCR, UNICEF, United Nations Education, Cultural and Scientific Organization, WFP, WHO) will team up with government counterparts and non-governmental organizations to implement a massive relief programming covering the emergency agriculture, water and sanitation, nutrition, child protection and education, food and health needs of hundreds of thousands of beneficiaries.

[Last update: 23 September 2008] 

29 February 2008: Flooding in Pakistan resulted in the temporary displacement of over 2.5 million people.  A significant number of the affected population faced shortages of safe drinking water and inadequate sanitation facilities.  The health situation for one million of the affected remained precarious as threats of epidemics continue due to the lack of clean water. 

In addition, the floods caused widespread damage to standing or just harvested crops, food, fodder and seeds stocks and killed an estimated 367,000 small and large ruminants.  In the aftermath many flood victims were unable to resume agriculture production due to lack of seeds, fertilizers and fodder for livestock. 

In response, CERF allocated $6.8 million through its first-round underfunded emergency window for health programmes, water and sanitation services, care and assistance of Afghan refugees in Pakistan, emergency shelter kit procurement and distribution, and food distribution. 

Pakistan 2009
Pakistan 2007