NEW DELHI (AlertNet) – Pakistan will hold a donors conference next month to raise $200 million for the rehabilitation of tribal populations displaced by fighting between government forces and militants in the country's volatile northwest, Dawn newspaper reported.
According to the report, there are still more than 153,000 families who have not been able to return to their homes in the volatile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), located along the porous border with Afghanistan.
"Key sectors identified in this (rehabilitation plan) include agriculture, food assistance, health and nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, education, community restoration, infrastructure and protection," the newspaper quoted a statement by the Pakistan government as saying.
About 2.3 million people, mainly in the northwest of the country, were displaced by fighting as the Pakistani military moved against Taliban militants in late 2008, creating one of the largest displacements in recent times.
While most have returned home, some continue languish in camps and with host families due to the continued violence or fear that militants will return to so-called "cleared areas" by the army.
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