KEY DEVELOPMENTS
· On October 19, USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) provided an additional $397,000 through USAID/Pakistan to the Rural Support Program Network (RSPN) to expand ongoing water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) activities in Balochistan and Sindh provinces. The additional funding will assist RSPN in providing more than 267,000 people with access to safe drinking water.
· On October 12 and 13, USAID/OFDA led an assessment of flood damages in Badin, Mirpurkhas, Tando Allahyar, and Tando Mohammad Khan districts in Sindh Province. USAID/OFDA staff were accompanied by representatives from USAID/Pakistan and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Populations, Refugees, and Migration (State/PRM). The team assessed flood conditions, visited informal settlements, and met with U.N. and district officials to discuss the ongoing response.
· Since October 1, floodwaters have receded in all 13 flood-affected districts in Sindh Province monitored by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), including Badin, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Tando Allahyar, Tando Mohammad Khan, and Tharparkar, allowing some populations to return to areas of origin and relief agencies to conduct more comprehensive needs assessments.
· The U.S. Government (USG) has provided more than $25.4 million in assistance for individuals in southern Pakistan affected by this year’s floods, including more than $8.3 million in previously allocated funding that USAID authorized grantees to apply to the 2011 floods response. The total also includes more than $6.3 million in new USAID/OFDA assistance and approximately $2.7 million in funding from State/PRM.