SUBHAS RAI
Delegates to the International Conference on Nepal’s Reconstruction in Kathmandu on Thursday pledged more than $3.5 billion in earthquake rehabilitation. But exactly two months after the disaster, we also got a sobering reminder about unmet needs:
1 million people require emergency food
800,000 homes destroyed and damaged
50,000 households have got no help at all
Even in accessible areas, many families haven’t got the emergency cash grant of Rs 15,000 the government announced right after the quake. This raises questions about how support for housing reconstruction will be disbursed.
There are also concerns about how much of the money pledged on Thursday will actually come to Nepal, and whether it will evaporate en route in contracts, consultancies and overheads for foreign agencies.