Kathmandu
Jensen Huang, Chief Executive Officer of US technology company Nvidia, has donated $10 million to Nepal’s Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund to support people affected by the devastating floods in the Bhotekoshi River basin in Rasuwa district, Nepal’s Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle said. In a video message, Wagle thanked Huang, Nvidia’s founder and CEO, for the contribution, which he said had helped push total donations to the Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund above NPR 10 billion ($66 million). “On behalf of the government of Nepal, I’d like to express my sincere gratitude to Mr. Jensen Huang for donating $10 million to the Prime Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund in aid of flood victims,” Wagle said in the video message.
“I hope this sizable contribution, notable by any philanthropic standard, will inspire many others to also contribute to this noble cause.” The death toll from the devastating Rasuwa floods has reached 1,259, while 5,053 people remain missing by Thursday evening, according to the latest situation report released by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA). Since the deadly floods occurred last week, Nepal has been receiving various forms of assistance from several countries and agencies. Prime Minister Balendra Shah said in a social media post on Thursday evening that neighboring India had been providing all necessary forms of assistance from the first day in various phases. “So far, India has provided 74 tonnes of relief and rescue materials in five phases. It has also been deploying expert teams to the affected areas for rescue operations,” he said. China has provided Nepal with NPR 300 million and 50 tonnes of relief materials.
In addition, the Government of Nepal has requested China to provide 30 Bailey bridges for the affected areas. According to the Prime Minister, Pakistan is providing 86 tonnes of relief materials. Sri Lanka has pledged $1 million in assistance. Bangladesh is also preparing to send relief materials. The United States has pledged $500,000 in assistance. Australia has pledged $1 million in cash assistance and is also preparing to send a team, including experts and drone operators, to Nepal soon. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has already provided 83 tonnes of essential relief materials and pledged up to $10 million in assistance. Qatar has also provided 40 tonnes of relief materials, according to the Prime Minister.
The United Kingdom (UK) has announced 5 million pounds sterling in assistance. Similarly, the European Union’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) has announced 2 million euro, Switzerland $1 million, Denmark 3.5 million Danish kroner, Germany $2 million, Ireland 500,000 euro, the Czech Republic 2.5 million Czech koruna, and Norway 12.7 million Norwegian kroner in assistance. France has provided emergency relief materials for 200 households in the affected areas. Luxembourg and Latvia have also provided relief materials. In addition, the World Bank has pledged $167 million in concessional loans, while the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has pledged $5 million in budgetary support (grant) and $150,000 in technical assistance.