ISLAMABAD, Jun 8 (APP): USAID Deputy Administrator Isoble Coleman on Thursday said despite all facing difficulties on economic fronts, Pakistan had tremendous potential to overcome all the challenges.
Talking to the media, she said, “When I look at Pakistan’s economy, yes I see high inflation, but I also see enormous opportunities to see IT sector exports grow and enhance food security. The US wants to see a stable and prosperous Pakistan.”
Responding to another question, she said that Pakistan needed to follow robust economic reforms agenda to come out of the current economic crisis.
However, she said the private sector and other stakeholders during meetings with her expressed hope for coming out from the current economic challenges.
The USAID official said she held meetings with the private sector working in various groups. She said the US and Pakistan enjoyed cordial relations for the last 75 years.
To a question, Isoble Coleman said soon after her arrival in Pakistan she visited flood-affected areas and witnessed that the situation on the ground was not good enough.
She said flood-affected areas of Sindh province were facing the worst situation due to damaged infrastructure, washed away crops and livestock.
She said the USAID had pledged an additional $16.4 million in funding to bolster the recovery and resilience of communities in Pakistan devastated by the unprecedented floods of 2022.
She said these catastrophic floods affected an estimated 33 million people, wreaking havoc on vital infrastructure, crops, livelihoods, and livestock across the nation.
The newly allocated funds, she said, would provide support to over 20 million individuals affected by the floods, facilitating their recovery, enhancing risk reduction measures, and fostering resilience.
“The assistance will tackle the growing challenges of food insecurity, malnutrition, and disease outbreak prevention.”
Moreover, she said the funding would empower humanitarian partners to deliver nutritious meals to mothers and children, aid in the reconstruction of local infrastructure to mitigate future disasters and expand protection services to prevent gender-based violence and support survivors.
She said collaborating with partners, USAID efficiently escalated critical humanitarian assistance, including a successful air bridge operation in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense.
The USAID Deputy Administrator said she also held meetings with the Pakistan government officials and signed a five years agreement.
“This agreement builds on our countries’ long history of partnership and signifies the US continued commitment to support Pakistan on development objectives that are important to both nations, including climate resilience, clean energy, sustainable economic growth, inclusive democratic governance, education and health security.”
To a question she said, the US and Pakistan acknowledged their history of bilateral partnership in the health sector. For decades, the United States has invested in Pakistan’s health sector benefiting millions of Pakistanis.
The US has extended technical assistance for the provision of clean drinking water and sanitation services to more than 300,000 people across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sindh province.
She said that the US had donated more than 79 million safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines to Pakistan.
She said that Pakistan has been a strong partner in efforts to improve access to quality health services, increase budget allocations for health and invest in infrastructure to meet the health needs of the people of Pakistan.
She said that the US government is focusing on providing primary health care in Pakistan. “Strengthening of the health system in general is our highest priority in Pakistan” she added.
