ADB approves $554m Pakistan flood aid

• ADB has sanctioned a $554 million financing package to support Pakistan’s recovery.
• Furthermore, to support reconstruction efforts after devastating floods.
• The package will include a $475 million loan and a $3 million technical assistance grant from the ADB.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sanctioned a $554 million financing package to support Pakistan’s recovery and reconstruction efforts after devastating floods and to strengthen the country’s disaster and climate resilience.

The financing includes a $475 million loan and a $3 million technical assistance grant from the ADB and a $5 million grant from the Government of Japan. It will support the restoration of irrigation, drainage, flood risk management, on-farm water management, and transport infrastructure in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh.

Emergency Flood Assistance Project infrastructure will include the climate and catastrophe resilience measures. The lender repurposed $71 million from existing loans to help with disaster relief.

“This year’s floods affected 33 million people and caused enormous damage to infrastructure and agriculture,” said ADB Director General for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov. This project will restore rural livelihoods and rebuild critical infrastructure.

After unprecedented heatwaves from April to June 2022, Pakistan had its worst flooding in a century, with glacial lakes bursting, rivers overflowing, flash flooding, and landslides.

The government and development partners, including the ADB, projected overall damages and losses at $30 billion and recovery and reconstruction needs at $16.3 billion.

The loan will rebuild 400 km of roads, 85 km of the N-5, and 30 bridges.

It will help restore and upgrade irrigation and drainage structures, including canals and on-farm water facilities, to restore livelihoods and strengthen flood risk management structures to mitigate future risks to agricultural land, communities, and assets.

“More people are expected to fall into poverty as a result of the floods, and food insecurity could double in the most affected districts,” said ADB Principal Transport Specialist Zheng Wu.

This project will give vital support to rebuild agriculture and other priority infrastructure to support socioeconomic recovery from floods.

The $5 million grant will support staple crop cultivation in Balochistan and provide at least 60,000 farm households with certified rice seeds for increased productivity over 54,000 hectares of land.

The award will provide farming equipment for women in agriculture.

The $3 million grant will support project implementation and flood risk management investment preparation.

The ADB approved a $1.5 billion loan in October to support social protection, food security, and employment to mitigate external shocks. Part of the program’s beneficiaries are also flood victims, so it helps with the response.

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