Geneva, 9 January 2023 (TDI): The Foreign Minister of Switzerland, Ignazio Cassis, reiterated his support for the flood-affected victims in Pakistan.
Cassis was taking part in the climate change conference. The ‘Climate Resilient Conference,’ co-chaired by Pakistan & United Nations (UN) is taking place in Geneva, a city in Switzerland.
He noted that Switzerland was with Pakistan during the floods of 2022. It remained committed because the effects of climate change concern everyone in the world.
Also read: Pakistan seeks $16 billion to build flood-hit areas at UN Conference
He assured his support to the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, and, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres.
Address by UN Secretary-General
While addressing the Climate Resilient Conference, Antonio Guterres called for massive support to help Pakistan with a $16 billion rebuilding effort following devastating floods.
He reiterated that the country had been the victim of climate chaos and the global financial system. He appreciated the heroic spirit of the government and the people of Pakistan.
In this vein, Guterres added, “We must match the heroic response of the people of Pakistan with our own efforts and massive investments to strengthen their communities for the future.”
The Secretary-General also called for creative ways for developing countries to access debt relief and financing. He highlighted, “Pakistan is doubly victimized by climate chaos and a morally bankrupt global financial system.”
Switzerland’s support during the flood
The Swiss government has helped Pakistan greatly during flood times. Switzerland has allocated $3.1 million to help Pakistan confront one of the worst natural disasters in its history.
Moreover, around 2 million of the Swiss France currency (CHF) was given to support the activities of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the context of the emergency appeal. The IOM was active in the southern provinces of Pakistan.
The government provided CHF200,000 to the Swiss NGO Helvetas, which was carrying out projects in the areas of drinking water, food distribution, and, medicines, as well as basic necessities in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
It is pertinent to note that the Swiss specialists were immediately deployed as soon as the waters began to rise in Pakistan. They helped repair schools to enable more than 900 children to return to their classrooms & restored access to drinking water.
