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Pakistan listed among drought hit countries by UN

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3 years ago

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  • Pakistan is listed among 23 countries by UN that are facing drought emergencies.
  • UN report emphasises to provide immediate funding to developing countries. 
  • Report says an additional 4mn square kilometres will need to be rehabilitated by 2050. 

NEW YORK: Pakistan is listed among the 23 countries by the United Nations that are facing drought emergencies in the last two years, stated a report released by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), The News reported Monday. 

Other than Pakistan, the list also includes Afghanistan, Angola, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Mauritania, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Pakistan, the United States and Zambia.

Emphasising the need to provide immediate funding to the developing countries, the report also stated that an additional four million square kilometres will need to be rehabilitated by 2050.

United Nations Global Land Outlook says that Desertification Control through Sustainable Land Management Productive land is scarce in Pakistan — with 80% of the country being arid or semi-arid.

The land degradation and desertification are caused by unsustainable land management practices, coupled with increased demand for natural resources, and driven by a rapidly growing and largely rural population dependent on dry lands for their livelihoods.

To address these problems, in 2007, the Pakistani government began implementing a Sustainable Land Management Project across nine dry land districts. Over eight years, 120 square kilometres of degraded rangeland were rehabilitated through reseeding and community-based grazing management, and a further 80 square kilometres under sustainable rainfed agriculture and water conservation measures.

In 2015, the project was extended and rolled out more widely, utilising water control and storage structures, creating shelterbelts and rangeland management plans, restoring degraded dry land forests (for eg: community tree nurseries and plantations for domestic fuel), and implementing sand dune stabilisation measures. As a result, some 13,000 households directly or indirectly benefited from nearly 200 square kilometres of improved land health, better access to water for livestock, and reduced wind erosion.

This success of the program inspired the Billion Trees Afforestation Project in Pakistan’s mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which saw 3,500 square kilometres of forests and degraded land restored in just two years.

In 2018, the popularity of this initiative gave impetus to the world’s largest reforestation initiative — the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme — as part of a suite of nature-based solutions to fight desertification and climate change in Pakistan.

In the province of Balochistan, Pakistan, indigenous management techniques, known as the karez system, utilise tunnels that follow a natural gradient to deliver groundwater without employing mechanical energy.

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FO admits that a boat capsized in Greece, killing four Pakistanis.

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6 days ago

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The deaths of four Pakistanis in a boat capsizing event close to the southern Greek island of Goudos have been verified by the Foreign Office.

The incident happened on Sunday and at least five illegal immigrants drowned as a result. According to Greek Coast Guards, 39 people were rescued after the wooden boat overturned, but 40 more are still unaccounted for.

According to a Foreign Office spokeswoman, the four Pakistani nationals were among those killed in the catastrophe. In order to help the remaining Pakistanis and repatriate the corpses of the deceased, the Pakistani Embassy in Athens has been in close communication with Greek authorities, she said.

Additional information was given by Aamir Aftab Qureshi, Pakistan’s ambassador to Greece, during a press conference. According to him, there were 80 Pakistanis on board the doomed boat, and efforts are still being made to find the people who are still missing.

He added that the overcrowding on the boat was a factor in the capsizing. There are worries over the safety of the missing people because a sizable portion of them are children. He stated that five boats carrying Pakistani nationals were traveling illegally from Libya.

The public was also informed by Ambassador Qureshi that the government will pay for the return flight of the accident victims’ bodies.

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Every office will have a biometric system installed by Lesco.

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1 week ago

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system in each office.

Details show that the LESCO had ordered the installation of biometric systems in all offices, including the divisions and the circle.

The installation of the biometric system at the headquarters resulted in an increase in attendance, as the LESCO CEO had stated.

The CEO of LESCO claimed that the biometric system has resolved the issues related to the fictitious overtime and off-days.

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Around 450 Pakistanis have successfully crossed into Lebanon from Syria, according to a briefing from the Foreign Office.

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2 weeks ago

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Approximately 450 Pakistanis, including 250 Zaireen, have successfully crossed into Lebanon from Syria, according to the spokesperson for the Foreign Office, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.

During her weekly briefing at the foreign office in Islamabad, she stated that Pakistan is pleased with the resolution passed by the United Nations General Assembly on the Gaza Strip, which calls for an immediate ceasefire.

In addition, she expressed her satisfaction with the elimination of limits placed on UNRWA’s ability to carry out relief activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

It was stated by her that Pakistan is demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities in Palestine, an end to the genocide that is taking place in Gaza, the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, unrestricted access to humanitarian aid for those who are in urgent need, full support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and its mandated humanitarian activities, and medical assistance for those who are in urgent need.

Moreover, she stated that Pakistan emphasises the need for the international community to hold Israel accountable for the war crimes and crimes against humanity that it has committed in occupied lands.

The Israeli aggression against Syria, the illegitimate acquisition of Syrian territory, and the massive devastation of Syrian infrastructure as well as civilian and military sites are all topics that Pakistan is extremely worried about, according to the spokesperson for Pakistan.

According to her, this attack on Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is a serious violation of international law to the highest degree. By expressing our support for Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, we are also expressing our opposition to the Israeli government’s attempt to acquire territory through coercion.

The resolution 497 of the United Nations Security Council, which declares the annexation of the Golan Heights by Israel to be null and illegal and to have no international legal impact, was reaffirmed by her organisation.

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