Angelina Jolie arrives in Pakistan to visit people affected by floods

Angelina Jolie, a famous American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian, and United Nations (UN) Special Envoy, is visiting Pakistan to see the devastation caused by unprecedented monsoon rains and floods in the country.

Angelina Jolie is set to visit flood-ravaged Pakistan, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said in a statement Monday, in a trip intended to draw international attention to the country’s unfolding humanitarian crisis.

Floods caused by record monsoon rains and melting glaciers in Pakistan’s northern mountain regions have submerged a third of the country’s land, claiming the lives of more than 1,500 people, and impacting an estimated 33 million more, washing away homes, roads, railways, livestock and crops.

Authorities have warned it could take up to six months for the flood waters to recede in the country’s hardest-hit areas, as fears rise over the threat posed by waterborne diseases including cholera and dengue.

The deluge has left 3.4 million children in need of “immediate, lifesaving support,” according to UNICEF, leaving them vulnerable to contracting water-borne diseases, including dengue fever and malaria.

Jolie “is visiting to witness and gain understanding of the situation, and to hear from people affected directly about their needs, and about steps to prevent such suffering in the future,” the statement said.

Jolie, who previously visited victims of the 2010 floods in Pakistan, and the 2005 earthquake, will visit the IRC’s emergency response operations and local organizations assisting displaced people including Afghan refugees.

It is unclear whether Jolie has arrived in Pakistan, or how long the trip is expected to last.

Special Envoy to the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees, Miss Angelina Jolie arrives in #Pakistan to oversee UNHCR efforts in humanitarian relief for the #PakistanFloods2022. pic.twitter.com/tjdvnbTAU0

— The Intel Consortium (@INTELPSF) September 20, 2022

Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s minister for climate change, described the situation as “the worst humanitarian disaster of this decade” and has called for urgent international help in providing “food, tents and medicines.”

“Karachi is seeing an outbreak of dengue as hundreds and thousands of patients are reporting daily at government and private hospitals. The dengue cases this year are 50% higher than last year. With 584,246 people in camps throughout the country, the health crisis could wreak havoc if it will go unchecked,” said Rehman last week.

The country is also facing the prospect of dire food shortages, owing to the destruction of up to 70% of staple crops such as rice and maize. Total economic damages are now expected to total more than $30 billion — triple that of an earlier government estimates.

Both the Pakistani government and United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres have blamed global climate change for worsening extreme weather that caused “monsoon on steroids.”

Jolie will highlight the need for urgent support for the Pakistani people and long-term solutions to address the multiplying crises of climate change, human displacement and protracted insecurity we are witnessing globally.

The international humanitarian will witness firsthand how Pakistan and other nations are bearing the brunt of the expense of a crisis they did not start. The IRC hopes that her visit would shed light on this matter and inspire the international community—particularly states that are the biggest contributors to carbon emissions—to take action and offer immediate assistance to nations suffering the most from the climate disaster.

IRC Pakistan Country Director Shabnam Baloch said, “The climate crisis is destroying lives and futures in Pakistan, with severe consequences especially for women and children. The resulting economic loss from these floods will likely lead to food insecurity and an increase in violence against women and girls. We need immediate support to reach people in urgent need, and long term investments to stop climate change from destroying our collective futures. With more rains expected in the coming months, we hope Angelina Jolie’s visit will help the world wake up and take action.”

The Committee’s latest assessment reveals that people are in urgent need of food, clean drinking water, shelter and healthcare. A survey reported that women and young girls have no access to menstrual hygiene products either. The IRC has reached more than 50,000 women and girls with humanitarian assistance, including hygiene kits to address the sanitary concerns raised by women.

Many Pakistani celebrities are also working to collect donations for flood relief such as Hadiqa Kiani, who started a campaign for the cause by the name Vaseela-e-raah.

Prior to this, Jemima Goldsmith also put her film What’s Love Got To Do With It for auction in order to collect funding for the flood situation.

Read more: Celebrities ask nation to donate ‘generously’ as floods continue to ravage Pakistan