Minister of State for Overseas Development Peter Power has said Irish aid agencies will be given additional funds to help with the humanitarian response to the Pakistan floods.
Mr Power met the Pakistan ambassador Naghmana A Hashmi today to discuss Ireland’s contribution to the disaster.
Up to 1,600 people have been killed and 16 million affected by the country's worst floods in decades.
The minister said the Government is working in partnership with aid agencies such as Concern, Trócaire and Goal and have released €800,000 in funds for the immediate humanitarian response.
He also said the Ireland had placed a general fund of €20 million with the United Nations to help with the crisis.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr Power said it was a "colossal disaster" and more emergency money would be provided to aid agencies. He said the disaster is greater than the tsunami and Haiti "put together, not in terms of the amount of people killed, but in terms of the amount of people left homeless."
As part of the short-term response a Government consignment of multi-purpose tents will be delivered to Islamabad to help shelter those left homeless.
Mr Power also put Ireland’s Rapid Response Corps on standby ready to deploy should they be requested.
Earlier, speaking from southern Pakistan Goal’s Brian Casey said the situation is “very very serious”.
He said on Saturday alone, 30,000 people were displaced from the province where he is working. “The rains are continuing which is obviously causing us ongoing problems. It’s 15 days into this emergency and the catastrophe is just getting worse,” he added.
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