Pakistan Internal Refugee Crisis
Hidaya Foundation is collecting funds and in-kind donations to support the soaring number of internal refugees (over 2.5 million) as a result of the turmoil in Swat, Pakistan. Hidaya has set up a base camp ten miles North of Mardan city (Village Garhi Kapora ~ 28 kilometers from Buner and Sawabi).
Team members from Hidaya Foundation’s partner organization on the ground, Hidaya Trust, have already surveyed the needs of refugees residing in tents, camps, local schools, crowded rented housing and as guests with local residents. As more refugees arrive, they are being registered by our team on the ground. Currently, Hidaya is serving areas including Garhi Ismail Zai, Garhi Doulat Zai, Kot Doulat Zai, Kot Ismail Zai, Mahmood Abad, Gambat, khandar, and Shabaz, which are located within 35 to 40 kilometer radius with about 4,000 families – many more are pouring in on a daily basis.
The surveying has taken into account the needs of refugees, supplies provided by other organizations and supplies that are locally available – to make sure refugees’ needs are being properly met without wasting funds and time. Hidaya Central Field Operations (CFO) from Shikarpur has already transferred existing supplies from their central warehouse to Mardan and most of them have been distributed. Almost 20-25 tons or more of supplies are sent every week. A fourth batch of supplies will be leaving for distribution on Sunday June 14, 2009 (Insha’Allah). In addition, CFO is purchasing food supplies locally for providing to 8,000 families. The items already sent to field are as follows;
- 300 Tents
- 345 Pillows & pillow covers
- 188 Quilts & Blankets
- 4,000 Hand Fans
- 3,544 Bed Sheets
- 451 Towels
- 369 Sleeping Bags
- 20 Pairs of Crutches
- 8 Wheelchairs
- 11 Walkers (for Elderly)
- 25 Steel Dishes
- 31 Plastic Jugs
- 270 Plastic Bowls
- 138 Plastic Glasses
- 3,706 Pair of Shoes
- 609 Pots and Pans
- 190 Earthen Water Pots for Drinking Water
- 2,000 Family clothing packs containing seven women & children’s dresses
In addition 8,000 dry ration packages are being provided to families which include:
- 20 Kg Whole Wheat Flour or Rice
- 5 Kg Gram Daal (Lentils)
- 2.5 Liter Cooking Oil
- 6 Cakes of Soap for washing clothes
- 6 Cakes of Soap for bathing and hygiene
Hidaya is accepting Zakat (Obligatory Charity), Sadaqah (Charity) and other funds for this Disaster Relief Project.
In-kind donations can also be given as Hidaya Foundation is planning to send several 40’ ocean freight containers with relief supplies. Donations of bulk medicines and medical supplies, traditional Pakistani dresses, shoes, pots/pans, toys and school supplies for children in camps, etc. may be dropped off at our collection facility in Northern California on Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00PM-4:00PM at: 91 Montague Expressway, Milpitas, CA 95035.
Please contact us if you would like to send us your donation by mail from other states. Currently there are few in-kind donation drives going on in other states. For more information visit www.hidaya.org home page.
Updated Thursday, June 11, 2009