No district-level data of people displaced in massive Pak floods: Disaster Authority

Estimated needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction in a resilient way were at least USD 16.3 billion, not including new investments beyond the affected assets.According to the media report, Pakistan has been appealing to the world for aid to reach out to the affected people without having credible data on the affected individuals.The Asian Development Bank has pledged to provide USD 2.3 to 2.5 billion for relief efforts to Pakistan, the US pledged about USD 97 million, while China pledged over USD 90 million as assistance to the country.

Pakistan's chief national organisation tasked to deal with natural calamities has conceded that it does not have district-level data of people displaced due to the recent unprecedented floods, putting thousands at risk without proper rehabilitation.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Director (Operations) Brig Muhammad Umar admitted to the government's lack of district-level data while responding to a query during the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance held on Wednesday, the Express Tribune newspaper reported.

“I do not have the data of the affected people,” the director was quoted as saying when Member of National Assembly Dr. Nafisa Shah inquired whether he knew how many people were affected in Sindh province's Khairpur district.

Shah said that since there was no town- and district-level data available with the NDMA so far, thousands of people in her constituency had been left at the mercy of harsh weather and in search of warm shelter and clothes to avoid being exposed to cold, the report said.

The devastating floods that hit Pakistan in mid-June left more than 1,545 persons dead and thousands more injured. The floods affected 33 million people, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless. Swelling waters swept away villages, roads, and bridges, and at one point inundated a third of the country's territory.

The revelations by the NDMA chief have put a question mark on the government’s claims of providing relief to the people and the utility of the Post-Disaster Need Assessment report.

The Post-Disaster Need Assessment (PDMA) report, prepared by the World Bank with the collaboration of the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and the European Union, also assesses broader macro-economic and human impacts and recommends principles along which to develop a comprehensive recovery and reconstruction framework, according to the UNDP website.

According to the PDMA report, total damages were estimated to exceed USD 14.9 billion, and total economic losses reached about USD 15.2 billion. Estimated needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction in a resilient way were at least USD 16.3 billion, not including new investments beyond the affected assets.

According to the media report, Pakistan has been appealing to the world for aid to reach out to the affected people without having credible data on the affected individuals.

The Asian Development Bank has pledged to provide USD 2.3 to 2.5 billion for relief efforts to Pakistan, the US pledged about USD 97 million, while China pledged over USD 90 million as assistance to the country.