2010 Pakistan Floods

Stepping up onto the porch of a one-room house, I was met with the wide, dark, and curious eyes of a little girl sitting on her mother’s lap. Hardly two years old, Saima seemed healthy enough as she wriggled in mom’s arms. But the staff of our Outpatient Therapeutic Program (OTP)—our community outreach nutrition program—explained to me that even though she weighs in at 9.2 kilograms now, she was a mere 2.7 kilograms when Fatima brought her to the OTP site for lifesaving care.

As a Seattle native, I wasn’t expecting that the drive to Action Against Hunger’s base in Thatta, southern Pakistan would remind me of home. But feeling the spring heat wash over me as I stepped off the plane in Karachi and seeing the flat, dry expanse once we escaped the city instantly recalled memories of summer in eastern Washington. Here and there, the arid scrubland gave way to a farming plot or a herd of cattle. Dusty browns and greens stretched to the horizon, speckled with the yellow blooms of sunflowers.

NEW YORK, NY—Six months after monsoon rains washed over Pakistan, wiping out roads, bridges, and other vital infrastructure, millions still lack access to clean water and sanitation, leaving them at serious risk of contracting deadly water-borne illnesses like cholera and dysentery.

Last month Pakistan was hit by the worst flooding in its history, affecting an estimated 20 million people. Here we present a conversation with Action Against Hunger's Emergency Field Coordinator based in Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN—In spite of serious logistical challenges in reaching flood survivors in hard-hit areas of Pakistan, Action Against Hunger | ACF-International has launched emergency programs to stem outbreaks of deadly water-borne illnesses and help families who have lost everything. These programs target 52,500 people particularly affected by torrential rains in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh provinces.

Pakistan has been hit by the worst flooding in its history, with an estimated 20 million people affected. Monsoons have swept away homes, bridges, and roads, leaving millions displaced and in need of immediate assistance.

“The situation is truly catastrophic,” says Nan Dale, Executive Director of Action Against Hunger’s U.S. headquarters. “Survivors are in desperate need of clean water and sanitation, so our focus is on these areas. We’ll also be helping families whose lives have been turned upside down recover their livelihoods.”

Having described the floods as the most debilitating natural disaster in the country’s history, Pakistan’s government has requested international support. The government has suspended expenditures from its already meager development budget, and shifted its limited resources to the relief effort.

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN—With the most severe flooding on record in over 80 years, northern Pakistan is reeling from a natural disaster of significant scale and scope.