Following devastating monsoon rains and floods that have killed over 1,000 people in Pakistan in recent days, Belgium will donate 300 tents designed to shelter 1,800 people through its B-FAST rapid emergency aid system, the FPS Foreign Affairs announced on 29 August.
“Belgium would like to express its solidarity with the authorities and the population of Pakistan in these difficult circumstances,” FPS Foreign affairs stated in a press release.
B-FAST (Belgian First Aid and Support Team) is a mechanism which works with the Prime Minister’s office and most Federal Public Services, providing logistical support in response to disasters. It acts at the request of foreign governments and aims to quickly expedite humanitarian goods to disaster zones.
The recent rains, which have affected Pakistan since the start of July, are reported to be the worst in 30 years. Rains have swept away many houses and destroyed critical agricultural land in more than 100 districts of the country, especially in Balochistan and Sindh. The floods are estimated to have affected over 33 million people.
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In a comment to the BBC, an aid to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that his country was desperate for international support following what the Pakistani government has called a natural disaster caused by climate change.
“Pakistan has been grappling with economic issues, but now just when we are overcoming them, the monsoon hit,” the aid said. He added that the government had redirected funds from developed programmes to offer direct support to affected families.
