$400m ADB loan for rebuilding buildings hit by 2022 floods

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has authorised a $400 million concessional loan to help rebuild residences and community facilities in Sindh that were damaged by disastrous floods in 2022, according to a bank statement.

The 2022 floods were caused by strong monsoon rains and inundated one-third of Pakistan. The downpour affected over 33 million people and killed at least 1,700. Nearly 8 million people were displaced, and many are still living in tents and makeshift dwellings.

According to the press release, the concessional loan will enable the Sindh Emergency Housing Reconstruction Project to rehabilitate flood-damaged homes and community infrastructure, as well as support livelihood recovery, with a focus on increasing community resilience to climate change-induced natural hazards.

The project will provide conditional cash subsidies for the renovation of 250,000 houses with multi-hazard robust and environmentally sensitive designs. “It will also support community-driven construction of infrastructure such as drinking water facilities, sanitation facilities, covered drainage, and renewable energy solutions for 100,000 households in around 1,000 flood-damaged villages in Sindh.”

The project will also provide conditional cash awards for livestock, agriculture, small businesses, and e-commerce, according to the announcement. The bank said the initiative was a “key part of ADB’s multifaceted response” to the country’s flood catastrophe, and it was part of the bank’s commitment to offer $1.5 billion in overall support from 2023 to 2025 to speed Pakistan’s flood recovery.

“This project will help rebuild homes and communities, as well as restore livelihoods and basic services in Sindh, the province most affected by the devastating 2022 floods,” said ADB Director General for Central and West Asia, Yevgeniy Zhukov. “It is part of ADB’s extensive support to help Pakistan recover from the disaster which affected 33 million people and damaged houses and infrastructure across the nation.”

It further stated that years after the flood, the victims were still living in inadequate and temporary shelters that lacked basic utilities such as water, sewage, and power.