ISLAMABAD, May 30 (Xinhua) -- United Nations
Development Program (UNDP has implemented various projects in Pakistan
earthquake affected areas and will focus its attention on four keyareas to
revive the normal life in these areas, UNDP Country Director Xu Haoliang said
here on Tuesday.
He said at a press briefing that
the four key areas included governance, community based livelihoods recovery,
environment recovery and disaster risk reduction in the quake hit areas.
The projects of UNDP had a total budget of 99.59
million U.S. dollars, he said, adding that 22.48 million dollars were
available,while efforts were being underway to mobilize resources to cover the
funding gaps.
UNDP had been successful in providing tents, kitchen
sets to over 11,000 families in the country and then to fight the winter helped
build over 34,000 semi-transitional housing and heating andcooking facilities,
Xu said.
Realizing the need to move from relief to
reconstruction, he said, UNDP initiated projects like training on building
earthquakeresistant structures, rubble removal which also provided cash for work
opportunities for around 6,000 people per month.
Technical support to Earthquake Reconstruction and
Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) and monitoring and evaluation support through
the Development Assistance Database were the othersectors where UNDP was
providing assistance, he added.
In the area of governance, he said, UNDP's
"BEGIIM-ER" (Building Enabling Governance and Institutions for Earthquake
Response) Project would assist in enabling local government institutions to
regain operational efficiency in 156 Union Councils of the earthquake affected
districts.
He said UNDP would also provide technical assistance
in critical areas of mitigation of disaster risk through the adoptionof building
codes and the use of earthquake resistant building techniques.
Regarding to the project of finally support to the
community, Xu said that the UNDP provided 6,500 jobs in the earthquake affected
areas under its "Cash for Work" project.
He said the UNDP would facilitate in preparing sites
for reconstruction and undertaking the salvaging and demolition of unsafe public
buildings. Enditem
