UN seeks $459 mn in emergency aid to Pakistan (Lead, Changing dateline)

NEW YORK - The UN said Wednesday Pakistan would need $459 million in emergency assistance to cover needs for the next 90 days for victims of some of the country’s worst floods ever.

More than $100 million is needed for shelters for the millions of people who lost their homes to monsoon rain-swollen floods, said John Holmes, the UN chief in emergency humanitarian assistance.

Holmes said the appeal will be reviewed in 30 days depending on updated conditions in the country. The monsoon season has added to the floods and it is expected to be over in two weeks’ time.

“The disaster is one of the most challenging that any country has faced in recent years,” Holmes told UN members in a conference organized to launch the appeal for the emergency aid.

Both Pakistan and the UN estimated that more than 13 million people are affected by the disaster and floods have destroyed some 300,000 homes, dozens of bridges and highways. Islamabad estimates the death toll at more than 1,600 people.

Countries have pledged millions of dollars in aid, but the assistance is arriving slowly. Public anger is growing in Pakistan over the government’s slow response to the disaster.

The World Food Programme said Wednesday that it had managed to run food supplies to 375,000 people but hoped to increased the effort to feed two million refugees by Aug 20. It said the cost would be about $150 million.