The OPEC Fund for International Development has extended a grant of US$1 million to provide relief supplies for victims of the earthquake that hit South Asia on October 8. Measuring 7.6 on the Richter Scale, the quake has claimed more than 21,000 lives and injured over 42,000 people in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan.
The earthquake’s epicenter was located 95 km northeast of the Pakistan capital Islamabad. It is considered to be the most severe quake to strike the area in a century.
In Pakistan, the primary areas affected are the North-West Frontier Province and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where 19,000 deaths have occurred. Rescuers are struggling to reach remote, mountainous areas, where tens of thousands of people have been left homeless. The situation in Indian-administered Kashmir, as well as Afghanistan, is also grim, with countless injuries and fatalities and severe damage to buildings, roads, water supplies and electricity networks.
The President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, has appealed to the international donor community for emergency assistance to help cope with the catastrophe. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has been working in close cooperation with the Pakistan army, NGOs and the National Red Crescent Societies in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan to coordinate relief operations. Urgently-needed items include food, tents, plastic sheeting, blankets and medical supplies.
The OPEC Fund's contribution to the aid effort will be distributed as follows: US$600,000 to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan; US$200,000 to the Republic of India; and, US$200,000 to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The grant will be channeled through the IFRC.