Pakistan floods
Above: Flooding in Pakistan in September 2022. Photo: CARE
In August 2022, Pakistan experienced unprecedented flooding, leaving 20.6 million people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. As of early 2023, the flood waters had still not fully receded in many parts of the country.
Over 8 million people in Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were displaced. There was significant damage to infrastructure including houses, roads, hospitals and schools, and loss of livestock and agriculture. Afghan refugees were among those affected.
The floods compounded pre-existing food security and nutrition issues, particularly for children. Pakistan has the third highest incidence of acute child malnutrition globally. As the floods continued to disrupt the country’s agricultural production, costs for supplies and transport continued to rise.
In response, the Australian Government provided AUD 5.2 million in humanitarian funding to support flood activities in Pakistan, in partnership with the World Food Programme and Marie Stopes. An additional AUD 1.5 million was provided to the Australian Humanitarian Partnership to support food security and nutrition, particularly during the longer-term recovery.
The AHP response
Above: An elderly woman displaced by the floods receives essential household supplies at a distribution in August 2022. Photo: CARE
The AHP response in Pakistan focused on nutrition, food security, livelihoods and indebtedness issues in Mitiari district, a community in Sindh Province severely affected by the catastrophic 2022 floods.
The response was led by CARE Australia in partnership with local NGO, the Shifa Foundation.
High numbers of people in Mitiari were still internally displaced many months after the floods, and poor food access and affordability was having considerable impacts on most households.
Through the response, vulnerable households were supported with direct cash transfers, agriculture and livestock inputs and support for kitchen gardening activities to reduce household expenditure on food, while increasing food production for consumption and sale.
Mobile teams also screened children, adolescents and pregnant and lactating women for malnutrition, provided treatment for those affected with supplements and therapeutic foods, and referred those who need further medical care to appropriate providers. Support and advice was provided to caretakers on infant and child nutrition.