The United Nations rated Pakistan’s floods as the greatest humanitarian crisis that the UN has ever faced. It has already affected more people than the tsunami in Southeast Asia and the recent earthquake in Haiti.
UN spokesperson Maurizio Giuliano said: "This disaster is worse than the Southeast Asia tsunami, the 2005 Pakistan earthquake and the Haiti earthquake."
Although the current 1,600 death represents a fraction of the 610,000 people killed in the three previous events, some two million more people - 13.8 million - have been negatively impacted.
The UN estimated that over $1 billion will be needed to help Pakistan recover once the rains stop. The World Food Program said that 4 million people will need food supplies for three months after the rains stop. But that is the crux of it, because the relentless rain is projected to continue for several days.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has admitted to the world that the Pakistani government does not have the resources to handle a disaster of this magnitude and pleaded for more international aid.
The army has about 300,000 troops working on the relief effort. Landslides have cut off large portions of the Swat Valley, hampering efforts to help those stranded. Heavy rains are preventing helicopters from taking off and all 29 bridges throughout the Swat Valley have been washed away and most roads have been destroyed, forcing relief workers to deliver aid by mule and even on foot.
Food prices have quadrupled and are now completely out of the range for millions of poor people who are in need the most. The scale of destruction will devastate Pakistan’s already fragile economy and the damage will be felt for many years to come while weakening the country's capacity to focus on alleviating poverty and dealing with the burgeoning threat of extremist militancy.
For more Geopolitics Examiner articles, click here.
For Afghanistan Headlines Examiner articles, click here.
Get the latest Geopolitics headlines delivered straight to your inbox. Just click the SUBSCRIBE button located above the article.
Comments