International humanitarian and Hollywood actor Angelina Jolie is visiting Pakistan to support communities affected by the devastating floods, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said Tuesday.
Heavy rains and floods across the country have killed over 1,500 people, impacted 33 million, and submerged one-third of the country under water.
Jolie is visiting to witness and gain an understanding of the situation and to hear from people directly affected by the floods. She will be hearing their stories, talking about their needs, and discussing steps to prevent such suffering in the future, the IRC’s statement mentioned.
Jolie, who previously visited victims of the 2010 floods and 2005 earthquake in Pakistan when she was the UNHCR’s goodwill ambassador, is scheduled to visit the IRC’s emergency response operations and local organisations assisting displaced people, including Afghan refugees.
Pakistan is also the second largest host of refugees globally. The country’s people have sheltered Afghan refugees for over forty years.
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.
She will see first-hand how countries like Pakistan are paying the greatest cost for a crisis they did not cause.
“The IRC hopes her visit will shed light on this issue and prompt the international community — particularly states contributing the most to carbon emissions — to act and provide urgent support to countries bearing the brunt of the climate crisis,” it said.
IRC’s latest needs assessment shows people are in urgent need of food, drinking water, shelter, and healthcare. Every person the organisation surveyed reported women and girls have no access to menstrual hygiene products.
