Carl de Souza—AFP
Not in recorded history has a flood of such magnitude swept through Pakistan. For the past month and a half, the waters have swept from the Swat Valley south to the Indus delta and into the Arabian Sea destroying bridges, roads, and 1.8 million houses. Some 20 million lives have been affected and 1,752 have died. The great Indus plain, home to one of the world’s oldest civilizations, lies in ruins. More rains could unleash greater tragedy as people in temporary shelters are left exposed to the elements and disease. The U.N. secretary general has rightly called this tragedy “a slow motion tsunami.”
This natural disaster is the latest blow to Pakistanis, coming on top of an economic crisis and continuing conflict with militants which had displaced at least 2 million people—many of whom had finally just started rebuilding their lives. Many have lost everything to the floods—their homes, clothes, savings, and, in many cases, their identities (as records were washed away), leaving them less able to make claims for assistance. The floods threaten to test the patience of a struggling population and add to social tensions, which could spiral out of control if early recovery from this disaster is not given priority.
One of the big lessons from recent disasters such as the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean and the earthquake this year in Haiti is that neglecting early recovery only prolongs the need for relief and slows down long-term recovery.
If winter crops cannot be planted, millions of farmers will need food aid for another crop cycle. If temporary schools are not restarted, children will miss an entire school year—and many may never get another chance to return to school. If jobs are not created through cash-for-work schemes, like hiring people to clean up the debris, apathy and resentment will set in. If homes are not repaired quickly, communities will grow apart.
The dividends from a well funded early recovery plan are huge. The costs of helping farmers replant are small compared to providing millions of families with another six months of food relief. An increase in the number of school dropouts would have a huge cost for society, including through intergenerational effects. Given these obvious benefits, it is surprising that early recovery initiatives are so often underfunded.
The relief effort has been in full swing, with coordinated action from the Pakistan government, civil society, and U.N. relief agencies. An initial appeal of $460 million has so far received around two third of that. But as the crisis continues to slowly unfold, more relief is needed and has been sought by the U.N. in its revised appeal on Sept. 17.
Early recovery features prominently in the revised appeal and will cost about $1 billion—$50 per affected person—for a period of 12 months. This plan envisages programs providing immediate income to people involved in cleaning up streets, rehabilitating water supplies and sewage and irrigation systems, restoring power lines, and repairing houses. It will support farmers to plant their next crop, thereby helping to revive Pakistan’s rural economy. It will help families send children back to school, and it will work to ensure that healthcare is not neglected and disease does not spread.
As needs vary across the country, early recovery must be planned, with district level authorities and community level organizations to tailor it to local needs. In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, floodwaters of great force have damaged housing and infrastructure. The province also suffered heavier loss of life and livestock. In Punjab and Sindh provinces, floodwaters entered the wider plains, creating heavy losses in agriculture. Now, after the floods, many of the 1.7 million Afghan refugees settled in Pakistan along the Kabul River must start all over again. They, too, must not be forgotten.
Between relief and long-term reconstruction, early recovery is vital to give people in Pakistan the means to pick up the pieces of their lives from the wreckage the waters left behind. A well coordinated, sufficiently funded, early recovery plan can avoid prolonged life support systems, and provide the basis for the robust, long-term recovery and reconstruction.
With so much to be done and time running out, the world must appreciate the importance of fully funding the recent appeal for continued relief and recovery. This support now can forestall dependency and unforeseen consequences in a region beset with conflict and tension. It can also provide that essential lifeline to build back a future after the waters recede. It is time to act quickly and generously—and to act now.
Clark is the administrator of the United Nations Development Program and former prime minister of New Zealand.