WWF – Pakistan join hands with UN-HABITAT to provide shelter to earthquake affectees
WWF continues to have extensive relief activities in and around Machiara National Park . After having successfully dealt with the evacuation operations and parallel supplies of goods and food, WWF – Pakistan, at present, in collaboration with UN-HABITAT has set an example of a quick and quality intervention in the fields by setting a demo design of a winterized shelter house for the communities in and around Machiara National Park before the onset of extreme and harsh winters.
UN-HABITAT immediately mobilised and dispatched an emergency mission to Pakistan currently based in Saudi Pak Towers in Islamabad in response to the imperative need to provide shelter to the displaced and homeless earthquake victims. The team consisting of two highly qualified and experienced volunteers from Edinburgh Direct Aid , Mrs. Maggy Tookey and Mr. John Home- Robertson, who is currently a member of parliament for Scotland, and was also a former member of parliament of England are treating the victim's urgent shelter needs. The mission is currently in the field providing winterized shelter to communities around Machiara National Park assisted by the teams from WWF-Wetlands Project, WWF-Machiara National Park-component of Protected Area Project, and two French consultants, Mr. Alexander Koclejda and Ms. Manon Gallego hired by WWF from Emergency Architect based in Paris and also people from the communities in the area.
Under the umbrella
of UN-HABIT the team has successfully
set up four prototypes winterized
shelter houses at different prices
in the communities and plans to build
1500 shelter houses under the UN-HABITAT
financial support. The level of support
and acceptability by the communities
is very high and the communities are
taking part directly in the building
of the models of winterized shelter
houses. One prototype design has been
built at the Margalla Information
Centre in order to test its feasibility.
The Minister of state, Malik Amin
Aslam also visited the proposed shelter
at the Margalla Information Centre
and appreciated the efforts of WWF
– Pakistan and UN-HABITAT in taking
the initiative of coming up with the
sheltering scheme for the earthquake
stricken people. Marriyum Aurangzeb,
Programme Development Analyst, was
also interviewed by the Radio Pakistan
on WWF – Pakistan 's involvement in
earthquake relief activities.
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