The Asian Development Bank has approved $554 funds for Pakistan to assistit in its post-floods rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts, reported24NewsHD TV channel on Monday.
The ADB will provide $3 million in technical assistance while theGovernment of Japan is providing $5 million.
The ADB financing will help Pakistan in its recovery and reconstructionefforts following this year’s devastating floods, and to strengthen thecountry’s disaster and climate resilience. It will support the restorationof irrigation, drainage, flood risk management, on-farm water management,and transport infrastructure in the flood-affected provinces ofBalochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh, according to a statement issuedby the Bank on Monday.
ADB’s Emergency Flood Assistance Project will also incorporate climate anddisaster resilience measures into the design of the infrastructure. ADB hasrepurposed an additional $71 million from existing loans to support thegovernment’s flood-response efforts.
“This year’s floods, which affected 33 million people and brought enormousdamage to infrastructure and agriculture, are a devastating reminder ofPakistan’s acute vulnerability to climate change,” said ADB DirectorGeneral for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov. “This project will helpto rebuild critical infrastructure in affected areas and restore rurallivelihoods.”
After unprecedented heatwaves from April to June 2022, Pakistan suffered aprolonged and intense monsoon that led to the country’s worst flooding in acentury with glacial lakes bursting, rivers breaking their banks, flashflooding, and landslides. A post-disaster needs assessment conducted by thegovernment and development partners, including ADB, estimated total damageand losses at more than $30 billion and recovery and reconstruction needsat $16.3 billion.
The loan will reconstruct about 400 kilometres (km) of roads; about 85 kmof the N-5, the country’s busiest national highway; and about 30 bridges.It will also help to restore and upgrade irrigation and drainage structuresincluding canals and on-farm water facilities to restore livelihoods, andstrengthen flood risk management structures to mitigate future risks toagricultural land, communities, and assets.
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“More people are expected to fall into poverty as a result of the floodsand the food-insecure population is likely to double to more than 14million people in the most affected districts,” said ADB PrincipalTransport Specialist Zheng Wu. “In close coordination with the governmentand other development partners, this project will provide crucial supportto restore agriculture and other priority infrastructure to supportsocioeconomic recovery from floods.”
Funded through the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and thePacific, the $5 million grant will support staple crop cultivation inBalochistan and provide at least 60,000 farm households with higherquality, certified rice seeds for increased productivity over 54,000hectares of land. The grant will also support women’s livelihoods inagriculture by providing farming equipment.
The $3 million technical assistance grant will support the implementationof the project and the preparation of an ensuing flood risk managementinvestment.
In October, ADB approved a $1.5 billion loan to support the government’sprovision of social protection, food security, and employment to mitigatethe adverse impact of cumulative external shocks. The programme partlycontributes to the floods response given that a portion of the programmebeneficiaries is also flood victims.
