Islamabad, Aug 23(ANI): Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said that international aid for the flood-ravaged country has risen to over 800 million dollars.

Qureshi said this while addressing the media after returning from New York, where he attended a special session of the UN General Assembly.

The assembly was convened to create awareness among UN member states about the magnitude of the unprecedented disaster that has claimed the lives of over 1600 people, affected over 20 million people and caused huge economic losses.

Qureshi said that the session was scheduled for one day, but it continued for two days due to the overwhelming response from the international community.

“Over 40 countries announced pledges amounting to 254.5 million dollars at the special session of the UN General Assembly, bringing the aid total since the natural disaster struck to 815.59 million dollars,” The Daily Times quoted Qureshi, as saying.

The Minister further pointed out that the response and pledges from the international community was very encouraging despite the recession.

During his stay in New York, Qureshi held meetings with several Foreign Ministers, including the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

He said that the agenda for the Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) conference to be held in Brussels on October 14 and 15 was being revised to include needs for post-flood rehabilitation in Pakistan. (ANI)