Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid orders Dh50m in urgent aid for flood-hit Pakistan

Food relief will support tens of thousands of people affected by heavy rain and devastating floods

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  Displaced people have put up makeshift tents along elevated motorways and railway tracks in Pakistan's Balochistan province to escape the flooded plains. AFP

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  A man and his children wade through floodwaters in Charsadda, Pakistan. AP

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  Homes are surrounded by floodwaters in Jaffarabad, a district of Balochistan province. AP

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  Children are reflected in a mirror near their flood-hit home in Charsadda. AP

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  People launch a wooden boat into rising floodwaters in Mehar, Pakistan. Reuters

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  People affected by floods move to higher ground in Dadu district, Sindh province, Pakistan. EPA

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  Displaced people take shelter on an elevated motorway to escape rising floodwaters. EPA

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  People affected by floods wait for relief in Dadu district, Sindh province. EPA

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  A girl sits amid the rubble of her damaged home in Charsadda district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. AP

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  A sick child struggles to eat in Charsadda after his family fled their home due to flooding. AP

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  A man rides his donkey-drawn cart during a heavy rainfall in flood-hit Dera Allah Yar town in Balochistan province. AFP

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  Homes are surrounded by floodwaters in Sohbat Pur, a city in Balochistan. AP

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  A boy pushes a motorbike after it stalled in Nowshera, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Reuters

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  Children affected by floods wait to receive food in Nowshera district. EPA

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  A man throws water out of his flooded home in Nowshera. EPA

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  People assess the damage to their home in Nowshera. EPA

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  A family salvages items from the ruins of their home, which was destroyed by flooding, in the Shikarpur district of Sindh province. AP

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  The flooding has affected more than 33 million people in a country of 220 million. AP

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  People salvage items from a damaged building in Kalam, Swat Valley. AP

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  Hotels are surrounded by floodwaters in Kalam. AP

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  Displaced people sit on a tractor with their belongings as they make their way to higher ground in Shikarpur. AFP

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  A child sits on a dry ground at a makeshift camp in Shikarpur. AFP

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  People jostle for drinking water delivered by a municipality lorry along a flooded road in Sohbatpur, Balochistan. AP

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, has ordered aid worth Dh50 million ($13.6m) to be delivered to Pakistan to help thousands of people affected by devastating floods.

The food aid will be provided by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, in co-operation with the World Food Programme and the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment.

The campaign to provide urgent aid is in line with the UAE's keenness to support those affected by natural disasters and crises globally.

On Friday, Emirates SkyCargo set up an airbridge between Dubai and Pakistan to offer cargo capacity free of charge on flights to transport relief aid to Pakistan.

Cargo capacity on all Emirates’ passenger flights to Pakistan will be available to organisations based at the International Humanitarian City to transport critical equipment and supplies, food and other emergency relief goods directly to five airports – Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar, and Sialkot.

"To support communities in Pakistan affected by floods, Emirates is offering cargo capacity free of charge for NGOs to transport essential relief goods through the International Humanitarian City," Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, president of Dubai Civil Aviation and chairman of Dubai Airports, said on Twitter.

The first Emirati relief plane flew on Monday morning to Pakistan and several more would fly in the coming days to provide support.

The UAE aid sent this week included about 3,000 tonnes of food supplies, medical and pharmaceutical items, as well as tents and materials for shelter.

The flooding in Pakistan has affected more than 33 million people from a population of 220 million and more than 1,100 people have been killed.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called the flooding “the worst in the history of Pakistan”.

He said it would cost at least $10 billion to repair damaged infrastructure across the country.

The crisis has forced the government to declare a state of emergency, mobilise the army for relief efforts and call for international assistance.

Villages with weak infrastructure from the Sindh province to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province have been affected so far, with rescue teams struggling to access many areas.