Dr. Jassim Taqui
DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies
Islamabad, October 13, 2022: Flash appeal has increased fivefold, symbolizing the
growing magnitude of the devastation, moving from USD 160 million to USD 816
million
Based on an estimated amount for immediate lifesaving
needs, a USD 160 million appeal was shared; however, as a Rapid Needs
Assessment was carried out, it was realized that the magnitude of the need,
especially for health, food, clean water, the shelter was much larger than
initially estimated
These were then further prioritized to absolute critical
needs for people. The major concerns are health, nutrition, drinking water,
shelter, and food security.
Pledges received so far are more than USD 180 (about 20%
of the total appeal); however, only 90 million have been committed with the UN.
The pace of the committed amount has slowed in the past two weeks.
Pakistan may see 2.7 million malaria cases in 32
districts by January 2023
5.74 million are in phases 3 & 4 of malnutrition
(phase 5 is famine)
FAO assesses that some 9.4 million acres of crop area in
Pakistan were potentially inundated.
The Government of Pakistan assesses floods destroyed at
least 4m acres of farmland, and with large areas still, underwater, new crops
cannot be sown
Major crops that were affected were cotton, rice, sugar
cane, and orchards. Farmers have lost their livelihood. They lost their crops
and the seeds that they were to use to plant for the next season
353,000 small farms are in affected areas, and if they
are not able to sow the seeds in time, it will directly impact the food basket
for the whole country
The planting window is very short, starting now (October)
till December, and farmers will need seeds and fertilizers immediately
The international price for fertilizers is quite high,
and although efforts have been made to reduce the international prices of
fertilizers, they are still unaffordable for farmers who already have nothing
The Government of Pakistan and FAO are providing packages
consisting of seeds and fertilizers
Livestock is an important asset for people. More than 1.1
million livestock was lost, which means hundreds of thousands of families. They
need these for their sustenance and livelihood
FAO is providing vaccination and fodder for the livestock
We are responding with what we have, but it is not
enough. We appeal to the world; please speed up the response.
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