ISLAMABAD: Total damages and economic losses to Pakistan as a result of cataclysmic floods this monsoon season have crossed over $30 billion and the country needs at least $16.3 billion for reconstruction and rehabilitation, a Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) report released by the ministry of planning said on Friday.
Heavy rains and melting glaciers triggered flash floods across the country that have killed over 1,700 people since June 14. Floods have also affected over 33 million people in Pakistan, washing away houses, crops, livestock and infrastructure in the southern provinces of Sindh and Balochistan.
The PDNA report was compiled jointly by Pakistan’s planning ministry and international organizations such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Union (EU) and UN agencies. It received technical facilitation from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
“The assessment estimates total damages to exceed USD 14.9 billion, and total economic losses to reach about USD 15.2 billion,” the World Bank said in a statement.
“Estimated needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction in a resilient way are at least USD 16.3 billion, not including much needed new investments beyond the affected assets, to support Pakistan’s adaptation to climate change and overall resilience of the country to future climate shocks.”
The Housing, Agriculture and Livestock and Transport and Communications sectors had suffered the most significant damage, as per the report, of $5.6 billion, $3.7 billion, and $3.3 billion respectively.
Sindh has been declared the worst-affected province, covering close to 70% of total damages and losses, followed by the Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces.
The World Bank said over 33 million people had been affected by the floods and over eight million people now faced a “health crisis,” as the floods triggered an outbreak of diseases and infections.
“The PDNA Human Impact Assessment highlights that the national poverty rate may increase by 3.7 to 4.0 percentage points, potentially pushing between 8.4 and 9.1 million more people below the poverty line,” the report said, warning that multidimensional poverty could potentially increase by 5.9 percent, meaning that an additional 1.9 million households were at risk of being pushed into non-monetary poverty.
The World Bank said Pakistan needed “significant international support and private investment” for a comprehensive and resilient recovery from the floods.
In 2015, UN Development Group (UNDG), the World Bank (WB) and the European Union (EU) collaborated on the development of a joint PDNA tool.
This tool represents a harmonized and coordinated approach, providing for an objective, comprehensive and government-led assessment of the post disaster damages, losses and recovery needs, and paving the way for a consolidated recovery framework.
