Daily Times

‘The humanitarian actors must do more to respond to the needs of world’s most vulnerable people, states World Disaster Report which was presented by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) at an event organized in collaboration with Pakistan Red Crescent at IBA here on Thursday. The event marks the 100 years celebration of IFRC with the launch of World Disaster Report 2018 titled ‘Leaving No One Behind’.

The massive and growing gap between the funds required and the funds available for humanitarian response is a major factor behind the exclusion of the world’s most vulnerable people. This is why people are at high risk of being left behind by humanitarian response, reveals WDR 2018.

The first session discussed about the challenges faced by local and international humanitarian organizations and the constraints of providing humanitarian assistance to all.

“We are all trying to do more with less, and the resources available will never grow at the same rate as the humanitarian needs. We will have to make better choices. The World Disaster Report lays out clear recommendations for how to achieve this, and Pakistan Red Crescent Society is looking closely at how to implement these in Pakistan.” said Dr. Saeed Elahi.

“In Pakistan, for instance in the drought response 2019, the UN OCHA has identified the monetary requirement as $96.3 million to reach a population of 2.06 million people but that is only 40% of the affected population of Sindh and Baluchistan. So in one way or the other we do leave millions behind. In our country, we are faced with larger problems. We have a burgeoning population and a struggling economy and are frequently faced with disasters -natural, manmade and emergencies. These result in displacement, loss of livelihood, crops and livestock straining both communities and the national economy.”