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Pakistan needs financial assistance to deal with “overwhelming” floods, Pakistan’s foreign minister said on Sunday, adding that he hoped financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund would take the economic impact into account.
Unusually strong monsoon rains have caused devastating flooding in the north and south of the country, affecting more than 30 million people and killing more than 1,000.
A man walks with his belongings along a flooded road after the rainy season and floods in Sukh Batpur, Pakistan, on August 28, 2022. (Reuters/Amer Hussain)
“I have not seen destruction on this scale and I find it difficult to describe in words … it is overwhelming,” adding that many of the crops that provided the livelihoods of most of the population had been wiped out.
“Obviously this will have an impact on the overall economic situation,” he said.
The South Asian country is already in economic crisis and faces high inflationa depreciated currency and current account deficit.
The IMF board will decide this week whether to release $1.2 billion as part of the seventh and eighth tranches of Pakistan’s bailout package it entered in 2019.
A man wades through floodwaters carrying his granddaughter after the rainy season and floods in Charsadda, Pakistan, on August 28, 2022. (Reuters/Fayaz AzizAziz)
Bhutto-Zardari said the board was expected to approve the release, given that an agreement had been reached between Pakistani officials and IMF staff, and he hoped the IMF would recognize the impact of the flooding in the coming months.
“Going forward, I hope that not only the IMF, but the international community and international institutions will have a real grasp of the extent of the damage,” he said.
climate change
Bhutto Zardari, son of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, said the economic impact was still being assessed, but it was estimated at $4 billion. Taking into account the impact on infrastructure and livelihoods, he said he expected the total to be higher.
Pakistan’s central bank has flagged record monsoon rains as a threat to economic output given its impact on agriculture.
Men walk along floodwaters with belongings after the rainy season and floods in Charsadda, Pakistan, on August 28, 2022. (Reuters/Fayaz Aziz)
Bhutto-Zardari said Pakistan will issue an appeal this week for UN member states to contribute to disaster relief efforts and that the country needs to consider how to deal with the long-term effects of climate change.
“In the next phase, when we look at recovery and reconstruction, we will have a dialogue not only with the IMF, but also with the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank,” Bhutto-Zardari said.
A man wades through water trying to salvage his belongings during the monsoon season in Charsadda, Pakistan, on August 28, 2022. (Reuters/Fayaz Aziz)
Bhutto-Zardari said that after the relief efforts, the country will have to consider how to develop infrastructure that is more resilient to floods and droughts and deal with the dramatic changes facing the agricultural sector.
“While Pakistan’s contribution to the overall carbon footprint is negligible…we have been devastated time and time again by climate catastrophes like this, we have to adapt to this new environment within our limited resources,” he said.
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