Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal along with the representatives of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Pakistan Army briefed media personnel at the National Flood Response and Coordination Center, Islamabad regarding flood relief work today (Saturday), reports Radio Pakistan.
National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Akhtar Nawaz said that the year 2022 showed the realities of climate change in Pakistan. “We saw four heatwaves that caused forest fires and monsoon rains began prematurely,” he said.
“We had predicted 25 percent more rainfall this year but it turned out to be 190 percent higher. We saw glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) as well,” he explained.
Ahsan Iqbal, while talking to the media said, “Pakistan’s carbon emission is less than 1 per cent however, we are among the countries that are most vulnerable to the climatic disasters.
“The scale of the floods warrants a major humanitarian response for which the support of the international community has started pouring in and we are extremely grateful. However, the scale of devastation is massive and requires a large humanitarian response,” he remarked.
“The floods are a lesson for Pakistan as it proves that buildings should be constructed on waterways,” he added.
Pakistan is experiencing one of the worst floods of its history. In the last 24 hours, 57 more deaths have occurred which has taken the death toll to 1,265.
