Pakistan seeks $8 bln in three years for flood recovery

Geneva: Pakistan needs $8 billion from its international partners over the next three years to rebuild the country that is reeling from last year's devastating floods, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in Geneva on Monday.

The floods, blamed on climate change, dealt a severe blow to Pakistan's strained economy while displacing some 8 million people and killing at least 1,700.

Rebuilding efforts are now estimated to cost more than $16 billion.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called for a sustained international plan to meet the daunting task of reconstruction and rehabilitation of flood-affected areas and build a climate resilient Pakistan.

While addressing the inaugural session of International Conference on Climate Resilient Infrastructure in Geneva, the premier said a new lifeline is needed for our people to power our economy and reenter the 21st century with a future that is protected from extreme risks to human security.

The Prime Minister said together we have to rebuild the lives and dreams of flood ravaged people. 

He said the international community's solidarity and long-term support to Pakistan at this critical juncture will make the difference between staying unprepared or facing the future with renewed hope and aspirations.  

“It is about the solidarity and vision needed to ensure the world's transition to a sustainable future not on papers but on the ground in schools, in the fields, in business, in industries and in homes,” he added.

The Prime Minister further said that his government has prepared a comprehensive framework for recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction with resilience.

Shehbaz Sharif said the first part of this plan reflects priorities for recovery and reconstruction, bearing in mind the minimum funding requirement of 16.3 billion dollars, half of which is proposed to be met from domestic resources and the other half from development partners and friends. 

He said the funding gap for minimum recovery is eight billion dollars which will be needed over the next three years. 

Shehbaz Sharif said the second part of the framework incorporates flood resilience design and infrastructure projects such as protecting key highways, rail line network, an early warning system and capacity building for rescue and relief in future disasters. 

“Pakistan's ability to recover from the colossal flood disaster, to restore critical infrastructure and revive rapid economic growth will hinge substantially on the speed of these actions,” he stressed, adding that the most important link in this chain will be financial resourcing and if that gap continues to obstruct our recovery and minimum resilience needs, the results will be too catastrophic to image.