Ahmed Khan Malik

Despite being rich in marine resources, the coastal belt of Sindh, which stretches from Karachi to Badin, is considered the poorest in terms of socio-economic development, reports WealthPK. In order to bring these areas on a par with the developed areas of the province, a dedicated authority, i.e. Sindh Coastal Development Authority (SCDA) was created for the overall development, improvement, and beautification of the coastal areas  (comprising Karachi South, Malir, Keamari, Korangi, Thatta, Sujawal and Badin districts) as well as proper identification and selection of development schemes and activities based on the community needs. The authority has been mandated to work in the areas of clean drinking water, communication, fisheries, livestock, horticulture, forestry, agriculture, marketing facilities, construction of jetties and harbors, and improvement of tourism and inhabitants’ socio-economic conditions.

It also acts as a coordinating agency of the federal and provincial governments, and any local authority or autonomous body to collaborate in development activities, provide technical guidance, execute schemes entrusted by the federal or provincial government, undertake research in developmental planning of various activities related to the coastal areas, compile relevant literature on planning and development, and conduct training programs and seminars on planning and development in the related areas. Although the authority has been working aggressively for the last many years to fulfill its goal of uplifting the coastal areas, the ground realities show that a lot of work is yet to be done to develop these coastal belt areas. The bad conditions of these areas often draw the attention of global institutions to carry out studies as well as give technical and financial assistance to Sindh for their betterment.

The latest one is the ‘Sindh Coastal Resilience Sector Project’ being prepared by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The project will support the development of a resilient coastal region in the province and focus on the districts of Thatta, Sujawal, and Badin. The conditions in these coastal areas have been degraded by a confluence of environmental factors, resulting in land subsidence, flooding, erosion, and saline intrusion and they are now expected to be exacerbated further by climate change. Poverty rates are high, education and literacy rates are low, and there is poor access to services and basic amenities. “There is a lack of integrated approaches to risk mitigation incorporating nature-based solutions”, according to the ADB. The technical assistance will help the government prepare the project with a high degree of readiness. It will have two outputs: (i) Coastal resilience strategic framework with priority investments prepared; and (ii) project prepared with enhanced readiness.

Credit: INP-WealthPk