UNHCR seeks $66m for Pakistan’s flood victims

ISLAMABAD: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is urgently seeking $65.8 million to help more than 650,000 refugees, mostly Afghan nationals, and members of their host communities affected by the recent devastating floods in Pakistan.

The UNHCR reiterated its call for more support for the country and its people as the scale of devastation from the monsoon badly affected people and infrastructure, said a press release. According to the latest estimates, unprecedented rainfall and flooding in late August resulted in at least 1,700 deaths, with 12,800 injured, including at least 4,000 children.

Some 7.9 million people have been displaced by the floods with nearly 600,000 living in makeshift relief camps. The provinces, including Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were most affected as 80 districts were declared ‘calamity hit’ region. Most are in just four districts: Peshawar (210,000), Quetta (170,000), Nowshera (77,700) and Karachi (71,500).

Some of those affected talked to the UNHCR about their traumatic experiences as rain and floodwater swept away their lives in minutes. Families rushed to higher ground for safety as dams broke and rivers burst their banks. They were forced to abandon their belongings and sleep under open skies.

UNHCR’s ‘supplementary appeal’ sought additional funds to address immediate needs, including protection, shelter, health, water, sanitation, and education for the affected refugees and host communities. It would also assist in the early recovery process, including building up the resilience of refugees and their host communities and rehabilitating damaged public services — schools, health, and water supplies.

It could take months for flood waters to recede in the hardest-hit areas, as fears rise over threats of waterborne diseases and the safety of millions of affected people, 70 per cent of whom are women and children. A priority remains timely aid for the most vulnerable and ensuring that it is delivered in a safe and dignified manner.

In September 2022, UNHCR delivered over 10,000 metric tons of goods in less than four weeks from warehouses and suppliers in Pakistan and regional and global contingency stocks in Termez and Dubai, dispatching some 300 trucks and 23 airlifts.

The UN agency also completed the first phase of its response, including assisting flood-affected families in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh provinces with tents, solar lanterns, plastic sheeting, hygiene kits and other life-saving items.

It is essential that the response incorporates prevention and preparedness measures to avert and minimise the effects of extreme weather events in the future and helps build resilience, particularly among the most vulnerable communities. Environmental sustainability will remain central to the response, including connecting schools, water, sanitation and hygiene facilities and health centres to renewable energy sources.