By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday, her first visit to her home country in more than four years, to visit areas devastated by cataclysmic floods and meet flood-affected people.
Her visit aims “to help keep international attention focused on the impact of floods in Pakistan and reinforce the need for critical humanitarian aid”, her non-profit organisation, Malala Fund, said in a statement.
More than 1,700 people were killed, 33 million displaced and a third of the country was submerged under water in the worst floods to hit the country, brought about by unprecedented rains since mid-June.
Sindh and Balochistan provinces have suffered the most due to the rains and floods.
The World Bank has projected that Pakistan could face economic losses to the tune of up to $40 billion due to the floods.
Malala’s visit comes as resident in her hometown of Mingora join a strike over a rise in violence in the Swat Valley.
Thousands of people have rallied in Swat Valley to protest against growing insecurity following the killing of a local school bus driver who was shot by an unknown assailant on Monday.
Monday’s attack came a day after the 10th anniversary of the shooting of Malala by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. Swat was a major TTP stronghold until 2009, when the Pakistani military drove the armed group’s fighters out. The recent surge in violence comes as peace talks between Pakistan’s security forces and the TTP have failed to yield any progress.
On October 9, 2012, Malala was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen for actively supporting girls’ right to education in Mingora, Swat Valley in northern Pakistan following which she left the country and shifted to Birmingham, UK.
At the age of 17, Malala was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her contributions to and struggle for promoting education for children.
Earlier, Malala Fund issued an emergency relief grant to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) to support flood relief efforts and “protect the wellbeing of girls and young women in Pakistan”.
“My heart breaks seeing the destruction in Pakistan and the lives of millions of people devastated overnight. I urge the international community to respond, not just with generous aid and assistance, but with immediate action on policies to curb climate change and establish climate-finance mechanisms,” Yousafzai was quoted as saying by the website.
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