UN humanitarian chief to visit quake-hit Nepal

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos will visit Nepal to assess response operations after a massive earthquake hit the country, said a UN spokesperson here on Tuesday.

UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told a daily briefing that Amos will pay a visit to Nepal from Thursday to Saturday at the invitation of the government, and "the aim of her visit is to show solidarity with the Nepali people, raise the visibility of the crisis and assess the response operations."

The latest figures from Nepali government show that the magnitude-7.9 quake has caused deaths of nearly 4,400 people and injured more than 8,100. Some 8.1 million people have been affected.

"With the death toll rising and millions of people affected, it 's a race against time as humanitarian agencies work around the clock to reach people and communities," said Amos.

A UN team is being deployed in Nepal's capital Kathmandu, where 80 percent of houses have collapsed, to help coordinate emergency relief efforts on the ground, said Haq. "There are 37 urban search- and-rescue teams on the ground with over 545 personnel and 36 dogs. "

According to Haq, several UN agencies are offering their help to the country. The World Health Organization (WHO) has deployed emergency health kits containing essential medicine, disposables and instruments to cover the health needs of 80,000 people for the next three months.

"The World Food Program (WFP) plans to provide food for 1.4 million people over the next three months," said Haq. " Distribution of rice is expected to start in Gorkha, one of the worst-hit districts, tomorrow."

The WFP is also activating its UN Humanitarian Air Service operation to access remote areas cut off completely or hard to reach overland, he added.

Medical and sanitation supplies, tents, plastic sheets and solar-powered lamps will be distributed to the affected people by other agencies like the UN refugee agency and the UN Children's Fund, said Haq. Endite