A Change of Guard

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Saturday 1 October 2011

Asian Floods Taking a Major Human And Economic Toll, UN Says


Heavy rain causes flood in Siem Reap on Sept. 12, 2011.

New York, Saturday, 1 October 2011,
Press Release: United Nations

The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) today voiced its concern at the millions of people who have been affected by the floods ravaging many countries in Asia, and urged governments to increase their investment in disaster risk reduction.

Pakistan, the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Thailand are all suffering from the effects of flood waters, and many people have lost their lives as a result.

“People shouldn’t die because of floods. We have the technology to alert communities before floods arrive. People can be evacuated in time, lives saved and livelihoods protected. Once again, early warning systems are the smart choice and the most efficient of all disaster prevention measures,” <"http://www.unisdr.org/archive/22416">said Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, Margareta Wahlström.

She also expressed her concern over the long-term economic impact of the floods on the affected countries, many of which have seen their infrastructure damaged and their services interrupted by the heavy rains, and said this would be one of the main issues she will focus on during her upcoming visit to the region.

According to a UNISDR report, floods account for a significant amount of damage to public assets such as health and education facilities, as well as to the livelihoods, homes and assets of poor people. However, most of these losses are not recorded by governments, making it difficult for them to invest in disaster reduction measures.

“The invisible nature of this large volume of disaster loss is one reason why so many countries are finding it difficult to make both political and economic decisions to prioritize investment in disaster risk management,” said Ms. Wahlström.

In Cambodia, tens of thousands of hectares of rice paddies have been inundated, and about 300 schools closed after the rains yesterday.

“The damage is very serious this year. It is the country’s worst flooding in a decade. More than 17,000 families have been evacuated to higher ground in 12 provinces across the country,” said Keo Vy, a Cambodian disaster official.

In Thailand, more than two million acres of farmland are underwater and more than 635 schools have been damaged, leaving thousands of children out of school.

In Pakistan, this is the second year in a row that the country has endured severe floods. The World Food Programme (WFP) reports that 5.4 million people have been affected, 73 per cent of the harvest has been destroyed, and 36 per cent of the livestock has been killed in flooded areas.

Gaelle Sévenier, a spokesperson for WFP, said the agency has provided 7,000 tons of food rations to 490,000 people in flood-affected areas in Pakistan, and added it will increase its efforts to provide food assistance to 500,000 new beneficiaries by the end of the month.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

In the U.S, the gov't help you out somewhat by providing foods, water, and other necessity to flood victim. But in Cambodia, you are on your own. the gov't don't care but when those politicians need more money to enrich themselves they will use the name " Please help Khmer" to get more money from donors and then steal those money for themselves.

Anonymous said...

Good comment. you know nothing about Cambodia now. That is why CPP always win the election

Anonymous said...

The CPP always won the election because it cheated. It lost the 1993 election and refused to give up power and it probably lost the 1998 and 2003 elections if it did not cheat. If the CPP is so confident that it can win the election fair and square then why it didn't want to appoint an independent election committee, why it appointed all CPP members to run the election. To know for sure if the CPP can win all elections is to have a free and fair election like the 1993 UNTAC election, not elections run by the CPP.

Anonymous said...

THe only person who say it was cheated is the person/party who loss the election and cry. No international observer or democracy countries like US say it was cheated. No country has boycott working with the goverment.

Anonymous said...

Foreign observers and NGOs said the election was rigged and a fraud with a lot of irregularities. Many opposition activists were intimidated, killed and arrested during the election campaigns. If you think you or your CPP never cry foul, why didn't they accept the election of the 1993 election and step down because it was the fairest election in Cambodia's history. The fact was that your CPP were and are still power hungry, so they cheated in every election to stay in power. If you and your CPP is not afraid of losing why didn't they let a neutral organization organize and run the elections? Why your CPP refused to give power to the winner in 1993? Not only that, the winner allowed your CPP to be in the coalition government in 1993 and then your power hungry Hun Sen staged the coup in 1997. This shows that your CPP will do whatever to stay in power and will not give up power if it loses future elections.