UN issues warning that deadly flooding could soon spread to southern Pakistan

With monsoon rains expected to continue pummeling Pakistan for several more weeks, the United Nations warned today that the country’s south could also be affected by deadly flooding, which has already affected millions of people.

Martin Mogwanja, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Pakistan, told reporters in New York via telephone today that the devastation wrought by the current flooding is on par with that caused by the earthquake that struck the country in 2005.

He said that the floods – the worst in Pakistan in living memory – have affected 4 million people so far, with at least 1.5 million people having lost their homes.

Mr. Mogwanja said that 1,400 people have been killed so far, “but this number may rise as new bodies may be found.”

The monsoon season, he pointed out, could last up to four more weeks, with the possibility that the flooding – currently concentrated in northern Pakistan – could move south towards the Indian Ocean, affecting millions more people. Already, the central areas of Sindh province in the south have felt the effects of flooding.

The search-and-rescue and evacuation phase has come to an end, with many people having been moved to safer areas by helicopters and boats.

UN agencies have been rushing relief to the area since the early days of the disaster. The World Food Programme (WFP) has provided 500 metric tons of food, while the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has distributed enough clean drinking water for 700,000 people. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has supplied 11,000 tents and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) has distributed dozens of cholera kits for health centres.

“However, this is only a small fraction of the response required given the scale of this disaster and also its geographic scope,” Mr. Mogwanja stressed.

In the hard-hit province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province, it is estimated that between 30 and 40 per cent of those in need of assistance have received help, but there are still many who have not been reached with aid.

“This is of great concern to us, which is why we are acting as quickly as we can,” the Coordinator stressed.

Earlier this week, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced that up to $10 million will be disbursed from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), set up in 2006 to allow the UN to dispatch funds to tackle disasters and crises as soon as they emerge, to help address needs in Pakistan following the floods.

In addition, Mr. Mogwanja said that the UN has set up an emergency relief fund, with nearly $10 million received so far. UN agencies have also received $16 million for their work.

“However, this response so far is not sufficient to enable UN agencies and their partners to address the extent of the crisis,” he underlined, adding that a flash appeal to deal with the disaster will soon be launched by the UN and its humanitarian partners.

An initial emergency response plan is being prepared to cover immediate relief needs – such as food, health care, clean water, shelter, agriculture and others – for the next 90 days.

The UN, Mr. Mogwanja said, is using its contingency stocks and has diverted funds, but “all this is just running out given the scale and scope of this crisis.”

He estimated that between $150 million and $200 million, or possibly more, will be required for relief and longer-term recovery to allow people to rebuild their livelihoods and repair infrastructure, with many bridges and roads having been washed away by the floods.

“In some affected areas, crops have been destroyed or severely damaged, which will significantly affect livelihoods in the medium-term,” Catherine Bragg, UN Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, said yesterday.

UNICEF today appealed for more than $47 million to fund its relief operation in Pakistan, where 1.4 million children have been affected by the flooding.

The agency said it will concentrate on the critical areas of water and sanitation, health, nutrition, education and child protection.

For its part, UNHCR today called for $21 million to help those affected by floods, including Afghan refugees and Pakistani host communities.

It initially hopes to support more than 350,000 of the most vulnerable among the flood-affected population.

The UN is also helping thousands of people in neighbouring Afghanistan, where monsoon rains have also caused flooding.