Sajid Irfan

Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) is working in 85 union councils of 13 districts in different parts of the country to provide assistance to people affected by the floods.

A PPAF representative told WealthPK that the organization has allocated Rs250 million for flood affected people. He said more funds are needed to help the people who have no shelter, food and other basic facilities after their houses were completely damaged during the floods.

“It is one of the most devasting disasters in Pakistan’s history as 107 out of 160 districts have been hit, affecting 33 million people,” he said.

The PPAF official said 85,000 families benefitted from its flood relief campaign. However, he said, the ordeal is not over yet because the number of deaths from floods and its after-effects is still increasing, many areas still remain cut off, and people of these areas are in dire need of help.

He said about 9,000 kilometres of roads have been washed away by floods, while 19,000 schools have been damaged, affecting 670,000 students.

The official said the PPAF has delivered 9,608 food packages in most affected areas. He said the PPAF has provided 20,880 hygiene kits and 3,500 shelter homes to the affected people. He said the PPAF has also sent 4,350 water containers in the flooded areas to save the people from water-borne diseases. He said the PPAF medical teams have provided treatment to 16,658 patients and 4,600 cattle.

“We are working on different projects concerning disaster risk reduction, irrigation, drinking water supply, renewable energy, and health and education in 147 districts of Pakistan with contributions from 132 partners,” said the official.

He said many welfare trusts and local people are also contributing to helping the flood affected people. He said the flood damages will take time to repair, so sustained assistance is needed to help the affected people.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk