Concern supporting 210,000 people hit by devastating Pakistan floods

The Irish humanitarian organisation is supporting over 210,000 people in the regions affected. 

It’s supplying items such as food ration packs containing flour, rice, and beans; bedding kits with mattresses, quilts, and floor mats; hygiene kits that include soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and sanitary pads; and debris removal kits with pickaxes, spades, and wheelbarrows.

Heavier than normal monsoon rains since June have led to floods and landslides which have killed more than 900 people and injured nearly 1,200 more. Roads and bridges have been washed away, restricting people’s ability to move around for work and access essential services like healthcare and education. Over 8,000 homes have been destroyed and many farming families have lost their livestock, land and crops --  essential sources of income and food.

“Visiting the affected areas, I saw firsthand the damage and destruction. While driving through a local market, my heart descended at the sight of it buried under thick mud and scattered debris. The shopkeepers were there, knee-deep in the mess, removing mud and debris from their shops. They have lost everything; their shops, their livelihoods, their sense of stability,” said Shafqat Ullah, Senior Technical Advisor on Livelihoods with Concern.

“The destruction in a nearby village was even more devastating. Homes lay in ruins, crushed by massive boulders and stones carried down by the raging flood waters. Farmers lost their entire mature maize crops. In the face of such profound loss, we're committed to standing with these vulnerable communities, supporting with humanitarian assistance, rebuilding what we can, and helping them reclaim their futures.”

The areas worst impacted are in the north of the country, particularly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces.

Punjab is the largest region of Pakistan and is home to half of the country's 251 million population. These are the worst floods it has experienced in decades.

Concern is working in both provinces, along with Gilgit-Baltistan, which is also experiencing flooding. It is also preparing to respond in Sindh province as the flood water is forecast to enter the province in the coming days, where 1.6 million people are at risk. 

Almost a million (935,668) people have been rescued. The government has established 1,378 relief camps sheltering nearly 42,000 people. Concern, alongside its partners, are repairing facilities like toilets, hand pumps and handwashing stations in some of these camps. 

“Our financial situation is very difficult, and we live hand-to-mouth,” said Yasmeen Akhtar from Punjab province.  “During the recent heavy rains, our house completely collapsed, and rainwater flooded our home. We were left with no shelter, no food, and no basic utensils to cook with. For four to five days, our neighbors supported us with food and helped rescue us from the dangerous situation.” 

“I am incredibly thankful to Concern as I received a kitchen set and a hygiene kit, which helped us restore some dignity and meet our basic needs during a very difficult time.”

The areas hit are known as Pakistan’s farming belt. Food prices have already increased due to the floods destroying vegetables and maize stocks. Damage to agricultural fields means the situation will only worsen as farmers will be unable to plant wheat for the coming harvest season. 

Extreme weather events leading to heavier monsoon rains are becoming more regular in Pakistan due to climate change. Cloudbursts, a rare phenomenon, hit a district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on August 15. More than 150mm of rain fell in just an hour; for comparison the average rainfall in Ireland for the entire month of August was 78.1mm. 

Many of the areas hit by this year’s flooding also experienced fatal and catastrophic floods in 2022, in which at least 1,700 people were killed. It was the most devastating natural disaster in Pakistan’s recorded history.  More than eight million people were displaced, and the loss to the economy was estimated at €25 billion by the World Bank.

Now just three years on, Pakistan is facing a similar catastrophe, with many communities still not recovered from having lost their homes, land, and everything they had worked for in 2022.

Concern has been working in Pakistan for 24 years, establishing programmes which build climate resilience, livelihoods, respond to emergencies, and combat hunger and malnutrition.

For further information contact Eilis Staunton, Media Relations Officer, Concern Worldwide, at eilis.staunton@concern.net or +353 85 872 0720.