ATLANTA – To help relief efforts aimed at the estimated 20 million people affected by flooding in Pakistan, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has given a $6,700 grant to Conscience International, a CBF partner working in the region for the past 20 years.
The flooding, which began with torrential rains July 22, in the province of Baluchistan, has impacted an estimated 22,000 square miles or about one-fifth of the country, according to the New York Times. Published death toll numbers are as high as 1,600.
By partnering with Conscience International, a CBF partner since 2008, grant money is aimed at reaching Pakistan’s most neglected population in three areas: food aid, medical assistance and water purification.
Working with two local Pakistani partner organizations, emergency food aid is directed to 1,500 families, serving up to 10,500 individuals. For $30 per family, the food package includes water, flour, rice, cooking oil, soap, detergent, matches and other emergency food and hygiene items designed to feed a family of four to six people for 10 days.
Jim Jennings, president of Conscience International, said the organization hopes to impact three areas in the region with its work: humanitarian, human rights and peace-making.
“We can’t help everyone, but we can help the next child,” Jennings said. “If you’re not active, you’re not acting on your own conscience.”
Conscience International aims to organize and conduct short-term mobile primary health clinics in flood-affected villages and regions using locally-hired physicians and nurses. Jennings said a gift of $200 will fund treatment of up to 50 patients.
Although water has forced so many out of their homes in Pakistan, one of the biggest challenges is finding enough clean water to drink. Health care professionals will be conducting public health sessions on the dangers of cholera, diarrhea and other diseases. Also, Conscience International will be raising money to purchase and install water purification systems, with the capacity of serving thousands of people, with a price tag between $5,000 and $10,000.
While the grant to Conscience International is significant, Rob Nash, CBF Coordinator for Global Missions wishes it were more.
“Our general relief funds are depleted as a result of a number of global disasters including Pakistan, Chile, Haiti and Indonesia,” Nash said. “We are always very careful to honor the desires of individuals and churches by sending the money directly to the location they designate.
“Churches and individuals can help by sending funding that is not specifically earmarked for a particular disaster, but which provides us with funding to draw from when disasters occur at various places around the world.”
Contributions can be made online at https://www.thefellowship.info/Give/Donate.aspx?fund=DR. Gifts by mail can be sent to Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, P.O. Box 101699, Atlanta, GA 30392, indicating fund No. 17000 “Disaster Response.”
CBF is a fellowship of Baptist Christians and churches who share a passion for the Great Commission and a commitment to Baptist principles of faith and practice. The Fellowship’s mission is to serve Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.