| I would like to express my profound thanks to the
Irish public for their extraordinary generosity to GOAL’s
Pakistan Earthquake Appeal. These essential donations are now helping
our aid workers (GOALies) to rebuild communities in Pakistan’s
remote and mountainous Bagh region.
Our team is rushing against the clock to bring essential relief
to communities on both sides of the line of control separating Pakistan
Administered Kashmir from Indian Administered Kashmir. Snow has
started to fall in northern Pakistan, and the dropping snow line,
as well as the rains at lower elevations, is making life cold and
miserable for the survivors.
GOAL started working in the earthquake-ravaged Kashmir, four days
after the earthquake of October 8th 2005, in the remote and mountainous
Bagh district in southern Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, where 95%
of houses in the district were flattened. GOAL is currently assisting
up to 140,000 people.
GOAL’s emergency shelter distribution programme has so far
distributed 840 winterised tents, 49,345 blankets, over 6,183 plastic
sheeting and 3,299 sleeping bags. A further 80,000 galvanised sheets
are in the pipeline which will support a further 13,500 families.
GOALies are distributing life saving food to more than 66,000 people
every month, and are also distributing food basket to survivors,
which include: wheat, flour, pulses, vegetable oil, salt and dates.
Further to the emergency relief, GOAL is also preparing a strategy
for rehabilitation and intends to help those affected families rebuild
their lives: GOAL’s cash-for-work scheme kicks off this week
to encourage communities to rebuild schools by paying them a wage.
Not one school was left after the October 8th tragedy. The initiative
is beneficial on two fronts: not only will it ensure that the children
get back to school soon, but the parents will also have a livelihood
and a job, bringing more meaning and normality to family life. GOAL
had much success with similar schemes in Sri Lanka in the wake of
the tsunami, and we’re expecting equally great results from
the scheme in Pakistan.
Over the coming weeks, GOAL will intensify relief efforts to ensure
that those most in need receive adequate food and shelter in advance
of the snow. GOAL will also carry out multiple activities as part
of the rehabilitation programme, to ensure that survivors have the
capacity to begin the task of rehabilitation when the winter has
passed.
GOAL believes in keeping its cost base as low as possible, and
is proud to have kept administration costs at an average of 5 per
cent over a 28-year period.
Once again, I would like to thank anyone who has contributed in
any way to our work in Pakistan, which allowed GOAL to immediately
help save lives and provide emergency relief to the traumatised
survivors.
Yours sincerely,
JOHN O’SHEA
GOAL
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