Amid the economic and political chaos afflicting the country, the plight of millions of flood victims has been getting far less attention than it deserves. According to Unicef, over 10 million affectees still lack access to clean drinking water, and over half of those only have access to contaminated water. While the situation was not great to begin with — even before the floods, only about 36% of the country’s water supply was safe for consumption — the disruption of the broader water supply system due to flood-related infrastructure damage and the physical displacement of people means all of the affectees remain at high risk of health problems.
If there were ever a reason to bridge political divides, it is this. Water is one of the most basic rights, yet millions of people, including children, have no access to safe water, but instead of addressing the problem, our ruling class continues to fight to get special treatment for themselves rather than focusing on giving the most basic respect to the humanity of millions of people. But this is clearly asking for too much — after all, about nine months have passed since the floods, and millions of affectees still lack other basic facilities, not just water. There has also been a significant increase in open defecation due to the lack of sanitation facilities. This acts as a multiplier for several diseases in a country where “half of all child deaths” are already attributable to malnutrition, which, in turn, is worsened by unsafe water and poor sanitation.
Meanwhile, almost 10 million flood-affected children lack access to “essential social services”, according to the UN, and even Unicef’s appeal for life-saving support for women and children in the flood zones is barely half-funded. Unfortunately, flood victims are yesterday’s news for the ‘leaders’ in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi, who would much rather battle it out over scheduling the upcoming elections and clearing the field to make it easier to take or maintain power, rather than serve the citizens who need the most help.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 23rd, 2023.
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