“We will continue until lives are rebuilt and dignity is restored”

One year on since flooding devastated Pakistan, Islamic relief Pakistan’s Country Director Asif Sherazi sheds light on our support to flood-affected communities, their current situation, and the long road to recovery ahead. 

A profound impact 

It has been a year since devastating floods hit Pakistan, affecting the lives of over 33 million people. 

Two months of record-breaking rainfall  hit the country in 2022, submerging swathes of  land, and destroying more than 2 million homes. Almost 8 million people were left homeless, in desperate need of basic provisions like food, shelter and clean water. 

Thanks to your generous donations, Islamic Relief has been able to deliver aid to more than 1.4 million people over the past year, including food, clean water and healthcare.

One year on, Islamic Relief Pakistan is carrying out recovery and rehabilitation efforts in the worst-affected parts of the country.

We are rebuilding homes and helping affected communities to rebuild their livelihoods through training and cash grants. 

We’re also building infrastructure like pavements and culverts, improving water access, establishing temporary schools and repairing protection walls and structures. 

One of the most important aspects of our rebuilding work involves helping to build communities’ resilience and to help prepare for future disasters. We are building zero-carbon shelters which are eco-friendly, as well as disaster resilient- made of mud, lime and bamboo. 

We are training communities and equipping them with vital knowledge on how to cope with natural disasters and the continuously-changing climate. 

Working with local communities, Islamic Relief strives to identify and serve those who are most vulnerable, including women and child-headed households and families with persons suffering from disabilities.

With your support, our team here in Pakistan intends to continue our vital work and to stay until lives are rebuilt and dignity is restored. 

Communities continue to struggle

Although our teams are working tirelessly to help communities get back on their feet, there is still a long way to go. The impact of the floods was immense, affecting almost every aspect of daily life, from education to malnutrition.  

One year on, education is a huge issue. Pupils’ education has been severely  disrupted after school buildings were demolished in the worst-affected areas. Permanent schools are yet to be constructed, and until they are, the future is uncertain for young people. 

Only 10 percent of funding for education has been raised- a further 90 percent is needed to help rebuild the 27,000 schools damaged or destroyed by the floods and restore education to the levels they were once at. 

Poverty is rife among affected-communities. After flood water submerged crops and killed livestock, rural communities lost their livelihoods. 

Many do not know where their next meal is coming from, and malnutrition is common among women and children, who are struggling to survive.

Over 53 per cent of Pakistan’s  population is under the age of 25, yet less than 20 percent of the funds needed for nutrition and child protection programmes have been met. 

Public health facilities are still struggling to facilitate patients, and many are going without the healthcare they desperately need. 

Many communities also continue to lack clean water and hygiene facilities, leaving them vulnerable to water-borne diseases. 

Climate change is the cause 

Climate change is the root cause of so much suffering, poverty and destruction in Pakistan. 

We are investing increasingly in disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation programmes to strengthen community resilience, and we must continue to press the international community to keep its promises on climate finance, and ensure the loss and damage fund is adequately supported by the richest nations in the world. .

Islamic Relief Pakistan is keen on building new partnerships, as well as strengthening existing ones to reach more people in need. We are educating young people around climate change and climate action. 

The people of Pakistan are still extremely fragile and their lives have been torn apart by the floods. They simply cannot bear another natural disaster, and many are on the brink of survival. 

Decisive climate action is desperately needed and we are working with the Pakistani government,  local authorities and internationally, to help bring change through policies and legislation. 

As the Country Director for Islamic Relief Pakistan, I plead with you to continue to stand by the sides of flood-affected communities in Pakistan. They still desperately need your help, and their lives are far from being rebuilt. Struggling families mustn’t be forgotten from your prayers.