The total damage is estimated at $30 billion. The UN secretary general sees the country as a victim of climate change.
At an international donors’ conference, Pakistan received more financial aid than initially requested to help rebuild the country after the flood disaster. Aid pledges totaled $8.57 billion, Pakistan’s Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said on Monday. Pakistan has asked the international community for US$8 billion in financial assistance.
This amount is urgently needed over the next three years, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday at the start of an international donors’ conference in Geneva, which will be attended by representatives of some 40 countries, as well as donors. private individuals and international financial institutions. Sharif called for the formation of a “coalition of the will”. Overall, the cost of rebuilding is now estimated at over $16 billion. Last year’s devastating floods killed at least 1,700 people and affected millions, many of whom lost their homes. The damage is estimated at US$ 30 billion.
victims of climate change
UN Secretary-General António Guterres campaigned for massive support for Pakistan. The country has become a victim of climate change. Creative ways are also needed to give developing countries like Pakistan access to debt relief and financing options. French President Emmanuel Macron pledged $10 million in financial aid in a video message.
According to aid organization Doctors Without Borders, there are an alarming number of malnourished children and many with life-threatening malaria in the affected areas. According to Welthungerhilfe, only nine million of the more than 30 million affected received help. Heat waves can be expected again in February and many fear even higher temperatures than in 2022.
Little confidence in politics
Society’s trust in political leadership is not high. A significant portion of the state budget is spent on the military, which has nuclear weapons. Shortly before the catastrophe of 2022, an alliance of politicians who previously had to repeatedly defend themselves against accusations of corruption came to power.
Despite all the criticism of the government, one thing is certain: Pakistan has always experienced storm-driven disasters, but they are being made worse by climate change. And Pakistan itself has done practically nothing. It emits less than one percent of global climate-damaging greenhouse gases per year. A team led by German climate researcher Friederike Otto calculated that climate change increased maximum precipitation in the southern provinces by up to 50% over a five-day period.
(APA/Portal/dpa)