UNHCR adjusts Pakistan plan to deal with virus crisis

Sat, April 25, 2020

ISLAMABAD: The UN refugee agency said on Friday it had rapidly adjusted its country programme in Pakistan and undertaken immediate actions to respond to Covid-19 emergency in the country.

“We remain deeply concerned by the pandemic and the impact that it’s having on the lives of refugees in Pakistan and the communities that host them. During this past month, all of us at UNHCR have been going the extra mile — with a singular mindset — to stay, deliver and support the most needy in an already vulnerable community,” said the UNHCR Deputy Representative, Iain Hall.

UNHCR’s robust field presence in locations such as Peshawar and Quetta, as well as Dalbandin, Haripur, Kohat and Loralai, is crucial to communicating and providing direct assistance to refugee communities. Through direct outreach, the UNHCR also has teams that cover Punjab, Sindh and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

“The UNHCR is doing everything it takes to provide life-saving assistance to those most in need, and deeply grateful to all of the agency’s thousands of volunteers and community mobilisers who help keep us close with the large refugee population in Pakistan,” Hall said.

According to the UNHCR official, the agency’s longstanding relationship with the Ministry of Safron and Commis­sione­rate for Afghan Refugees and many experienced NGOs are equally important. “All have gone above and beyond to serve others at this difficult time,” noted Mr Hall.

With the support of UNHCR, refugee community structures, such shuras and women and welfare committees in the 54 refugee villages and urban communities in Pakistan, help deliver important health advisories and social messages concerning the pandemic.

Digital platforms are used to quickly disseminate information and interact with refugees, including referring them to medical services. The UNHCR also has helplines available 24 hours, seven days a week.

The UNHCR continues to help the government deliver its Covid-19 prevention, preparedness and response plan. The UN agency has already provided 10 fully equipped ambulances and 28 housing unit facilities to the provincial health departments and the provincial disaster management authorities in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Large warehousing units were also given to the Balochistan government to support isolation facilities.

Additionally, the UNHCR has distributed medical supplies, personal protective equipment and sanitation products, such as sanitary clothes, soap and disinfectants, and other relief items to rural health facilities. Last week, hygiene kits were distributed among thousands of vulnerable refugee families.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2020

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