UAEG BOOSTS PLEDGE FOR PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF

UNCLAS ABU DHABI 004713 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID PREL PHUM SENV AE SUBJECT: UAEG BOOSTS PLEDGE FOR PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF AND RECONSTRUCTION TO $200 MILLION REF: A. SECSTATE 208903 ¶B. ABU DHABI 4283 ¶1. During the November 19 Pakistan Earthquake Relief Donors' Conference in Islamabad, the UAE announced an increase in its aid pledge to Pakistan from $100 million to $200 million. ¶2. UAE Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, Dr. Ali Al-Kaabi announced that the UAE is committed to "channel" all its energies to continue to meet the needs of the earthquake survivors. ¶3. Highlighting a relief and reconstruction plan policy, Al-Kaabi called for identification of specific needs that could be addressed, such as funding reconstruction programs for schools, housing and health care. He said the UAE will work closely with the Government of Pakistan and other bodies involved in the relief effort, in particular with the relevant UN institutions and with the major international relief agencies, to make sure that enough aid arrives and that it is used in the most effective manner. He recalled that the President, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, immediately ordered that a donation of 100 million U.S. dollars be allocated for reconstruction work. Al-Kaabi said thousands of tents and hundreds of tons of food and medical supplies have been delivered to those areas affected by the earthquake. He said that four water purification plants supplied by the UAE are now in operation, in Balakot and Muzaffarabad. He said there has also been an outpouring of support from private sector companies and institutions and from the public, both through humanitarian organizations and through voluntary bodies in the UAE's various communities. ¶4. Above paragraph is a synopsis of reports in Al Ittihad, Al Bayan, and The Emirates News Agency, November 20, 2005. SISON