The United Kingdom’s International Development Agency has launched Noor, described as Pakistan’s first voice-based artificial intelligence platform built specifically to improve disaster response across the country. The announcement was made by the British High Commission in Pakistan through its official account on the social media platform X, with the launch positioned as a significant step in protecting communities most exposed to the recurring threat of natural disasters including floods, earthquakes, and heatwaves. The platform takes its name from the Arabic and Urdu word for light, and is designed to function as a specialized emergency communication tool that operates entirely through standard mobile networks, removing the dependency on internet connectivity that has historically limited the reach of digital early warning systems in Pakistan’s more remote and disaster-prone regions.
Noor was developed in coordination with the Prime Minister’s Office on Climate Change, and allows users to receive critical early warnings and safety information through basic voice calls rather than data-dependent applications or online platforms. This offline capability is central to the platform’s design rationale, given that large parts of Pakistan’s rural and mountainous regions, which also happen to be among the most vulnerable to climate-related disasters, have limited or unreliable data infrastructure. Romina Khurshid Alam, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change, was present at the launch and highlighted the importance of building systems that can reach populations in areas where conventional digital tools fall short. The integration of Noor into Pakistan’s broader disaster management framework is expected to shorten response times and reduce the economic losses that typically accompany large-scale natural disasters in the country.
The launch reflects a wider United Kingdom effort to partner with Pakistan on building disaster-resilient infrastructure at a time when climate-related risks facing the country have grown considerably more severe. Pakistan ranked among the most climate-vulnerable nations globally in multiple assessments, with the 2022 floods serving as a particularly stark illustration of how inadequate early warning and communication systems can amplify the human and economic cost of natural disasters. By investing in artificial intelligence tools that prioritize accessibility and function independently of internet access, the initiative is aimed at bridging the digital divide that consistently leaves the most at-risk communities without access to timely information when crises unfold.
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