The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has launched an urgent appeal to raise funds to help some of 6 million people in desperate need of assistance as devastating floods
hit Pakistan.
The scale of the disaster is staggering. 33 million people – one in seven Pakistanis – are estimated to be affected. One third of the country is estimated to be underwater,
an area equivalent to the size of the UK.
More than a million homes have been destroyed or badly damaged, leaving many people homeless and without clean water or sanitation. There is a high risk of water-borne diseases spreading, with cholera already being detected.
Food stocks and supplies have been swept away, with 2 million acres of crops affected and over three quarters of a million livestock lost, leaving people in need of food support in the immediate and longer term.
A report by NASA’s Earth Observatory suggests that the provinces of Balochistan and Sindh have so far this year received five to six times their 30-year average rainfall.
The Pakistan Government has declared a national emergency and has appealed to the international community for support.
DEC Chief Executive Saleh Saeed opened the press conference by announcing that the UK Government would match donations to the appeal up to £5 million. He said, “The scenes we are witnessing today in Pakistan are truly shocking. By working together with our member charities, and their local partners on the ground, and the DEC’s national media and corporate partners, we hope to reach millions across Pakistan who are in urgent need of immediate help to survive.”
Jennifer Ankrom-Khan, Country Director for Action Against Hunger Pakistan, speaking from Islamabad, said that the situation was even worse than the figures being shared. “The figures are shocking, and having been here in 2010 there are a lot of comparisons for us, but this situation is actually worse. The figures don’t represent the reality. Since our initial assessments there have been two more rounds of heavy rains. It’s far worse than the figures we’re seeing right now and the rivers are still flowing.”
She added. “There are miles and miles of submerged land and people on the few banks which are still above the water.”
Waseem Ahmad, CEO of Islamic Relief Worldwide, has been delivering aid in affected areas and was involved in the response to the floods in 2010. He said: “In my 22 years of experience as a humanitarian aid worker I have never seen anything like this.”
Image: Islamic Relief
“Access is a big issue, there is not even the dry land to airlift people. I was in Sindh Province in an area where there was seven feet of water and we couldn’t see the houses or electricity pylons. People were stranded on the rooftop waiting for the water to go away – they didn’t want to leave their belongings. After two days we were able to deliver aid to them. I also saw people in these areas using local materials; rubbers
and tyres to build boats.”
The DEC brings together 15 leading aid charities at times of crisis overseas. Eleven of these are responding in Pakistan either directly or through local partners. The charities responding include British Red Cross, International Rescue Committee and Save the Children.
Every pound donated by the UK public will be matched by the UK government through its UK Aid Match scheme up to the value of £5 million. This support will double the impact
of the public’s own donations and will ensure that charities working on the ground in Pakistan can reach those in urgent need of help.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “The UK stands with the people of Pakistan, as they face this devastating humanitarian disaster, with one third of the country – an area roughly the size of the UK – now underwater.
“Through the DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal, we will match, pound for pound, up to £5 million of donations from the Great British public, ensuring vital support reaches those who desperately need our help.”
Ajeeba Alsam of HelpAge Pakistan, speaking from Gilgit said: This is something which we have never seen before, the scale is so huge.”
“Just a few weeks ago this country had heatwaves, and now these devastating floods and in a few weeks from now we are expecting winter to start, especially in the mountain
areas, and it’s going to have a huge impact on the health and lives of older people.”
Aid agencies are also very concerned about people’s need for food, both immediately and in the longer term.
Mr Ahmad said that in some areas 50% of people had lost their crops. “Another concern is about food security, I think it’s a real issue now,” he said. “People are talking about how they will survive in the coming months.”
Maryam Imtiaz of CARE Pakistan said: “In Quetta I met a woman who told me she is not able to nurse her baby as she doesn’t have enough food herself. She said she feared for the survival of her newborn and there are thousands more women like her.”
Ms Ankrom-Khan said: “Communities are the ones that are the first responders and we are trying to equip them with the things that help them to respond. Communities have been helping themselves to get out of areas, now it’s our turn, we need to come in to help them.”
