Islamabad, October 4 (BNA) The United Nations humanitarian agency warned today, Monday, that about 5.7 million Pakistani flood survivors will face a serious food crisis in the next three months.
A senior UN official has announced that the humanitarian appeal for Pakistan has increased to $816 million, from $160 million, amid rising deaths from disease.
In Geneva, Julian Harneis, the UN Resident Coordinator in Pakistan, told reporters that aid agencies needed more money to prevent a “second wave of devastation” from waterborne and other diseases in Pakistan. He said that weeks ago the United Nations issued an appeal for $160 million in emergency funding to respond to the floods but given the scale of the devastation, the August 30 appeal was not enough.
This latest development comes hours after Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority announced that floods fueled by abnormally heavy monsoon rains have killed 1,695 people, damaged 33 million, destroyed more than two million homes, and displaced hundreds of thousands who now live in tents or temporary homes. .
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in its latest report on Saturday that the current floods are expected to exacerbate food insecurity in Pakistan, and said 5.7 million people in flood-affected areas will face a food crisis between September and November.
Even before the floods, according to the World Health Organization, 16% of the population was living in moderate or severe food insecurity.
The UN agency said in a tweet on Monday that the agency and other partners have scaled up their flood response and provided assistance to 1.6 million people directly affected by the floods.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said outbreaks of waterborne and other diseases are on the rise in the southwestern provinces of Sindh and Balochistan, with floods causing the most damage since mid-June.
Several countries and UN agencies have sent more than 131 flights carrying aid to survivors, but many complain that they have either received little help or are still waiting.
The United Nations humanitarian agency said in its report on Saturday that rainfall in Balochistan and Sindh has decreased significantly over the past week, as temperatures began to drop before winter.
“Natural conditions prevail in most areas of Balochistan, while the Indus River flows naturally in Sindh,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. Overall, she added, in 18 out of 22 provinces in Sindh, flood water levels have decreased by at least 34%, and in some areas as much as 78%.
The OCHA report also highlighted the plight of flood survivors, saying that many continue to live in “unsanitary conditions in temporary shelters, often with limited access to basic services, compounding the risk of a major public health crisis”.
She said pregnant women are receiving treatment in makeshift camps when possible, and nearly 130,000 pregnant women need urgent health services.
“Before the floods, Pakistan had one of the highest maternal mortality rates in Asia, and the situation is likely to deteriorate,” she added.
Pakistan says the floods have caused nearly $30 billion in damage to its economy.
The floods washed away thousands of kilometers of roads, destroyed 440 bridges, and disrupted rail traffic.
Pakistan Railways said it has started restoring train service from Sindh to other cities after repairing some flood-damaged tracks.
MI