Tre års oversvømmelser og foran ny monsun: Hvad gør man?

Two months from this year’s rains, weather forecasters are already predicting above normal rainfall and in some areas standing water has yet to drain away from last year’s monsoon.

So, after three years of destruction, how ready is the country for this year’s monsoon?

“The situation is not what we would call optimal, but over the last three years, since the 2010 floods, there have been significant improvements [in government and humanitarian organisations’ capacity],” said Khaleel Tetlay, chief operating officer at the Rural Support Programmes Network.

The network is working with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in Sindh Province to boost communities’ resilience to (modstandskraft mod) natural disasters.

“Whether or not heavy rain will cause flooding is very difficult to predict. But if we prepare at the federal, provincial and community levels, a lot of damage can be prevented, especially the loss of life”, added Khaleel Tetlay.

The three floods have damaged infrastructure and houses, displaced millions and caused billions of dollars’ worth of losses to the country’s most important sector – agriculture.

The 2012 floods damaged nearly 650.000 houses in three provinces of Pakistan, and affected 485.620 hectares of land. Over 12.000 cattle died.

The residual humanitarian impact of last year’s floods and the slow drainage of floodwaters have increased vulnerability. Over a million people have yet to return to their homes, living either in temporary settlements or shelters built next to their damaged houses.

On the other hand, the experience of three years of flooding has also strengthened coping mechanisms (modforholdsregler) and the quality of any eventual humanitarian response.

Building defences