FM Bilawal says rehabilitation of flood-hit people may take decades

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that there is a humanitarian catastrophe in Pakistan at the moment and it will take years and years to revive the lives of the flood-ravaged people, on Saturday.

In an interview with BBC in New York, Bilawal Bhutto said “The destruction caused by the floods in Pakistan is heart-wrenching as more than 33 million people were affected and crops were destroyed and now diseases were also spreading.”

The foreign minister said that the rehabilitation of the victims is a big challenge because the government does not have enough resources, so it will take several decades to restore the flood victims completely.

Bilawal Bhutto said that the work of rehabilitation of the victims is going on, and they will start returning to their homes in a few months.

“This monster monsoon that Pakistan witnessed began in mid-June and finished at the end of August,” he added, adding that when the rains finally ceased, a “100-kilometer lake” was left behind.

Bilawal bemoaned the “irony” that Pakistan’s carbon output was negligible yet it was one of the ten most climate-stressed countries.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met Foreign Minister of United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed in New York on Friday and discussed matters of mutual interest.

The two ministers met on the sidelines of the 77th United Nations General Assembly session.

Bilawal also held meetings with Foreign Minister of Kuwait Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah and Foreign Minister of Belarus Vladimir Makei and discussed matters of mutual interest.

According to Foreign Office, the meetings took place on the sidelines of 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Bilawal also met Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov and Ms. Deemah Al Yahya, Secretary General Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO).