PM Shehbaz approves five-year plan for flood preparedness

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Weather Minister Mossad Malik announced on Wednesday that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has endorsed a comprehensive five-year strategy.

The minister disclosed this during a press conference, along with the head of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), outlining Pakistan’s flood management strategy following heavy losses from the recent floods.

The country said the 2022 floods cost the country 9% of its GDP. During the last three to four major floods, more than 4,500 people have died, and around 40 million people have been displaced. This year alone, 3.1 million people lost their homes, the minister said, adding that the existing drainage system could not cope with the intensity of the current monsoons.

Malik said the government has prepared a 250-day monsoon plan to address short-term challenges and will implement coordinated measures in the next 200 days.

“We should be prepared if similar floods occur next year,” he added. He said that a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz took key decisions on the three-phase flood management strategy. The first phase focuses on repairing damaged infrastructure, including dykes, floodgates and other critical systems, within 200-250 days before the next monsoon.

He said that the early warning system directed to the Prime Minister should be integrated immediately at the district and tehsil levels. Officers in the AC and DC offices will screen incoming data, and ensure that alerts reach vulnerable areas first.

Malik added that the prime minister has also called for plans to set up temporary schools and mobile healthcare units in flood-affected areas to prevent disruption to education and healthcare.

The medium-term plan aims to expand the existing drainage and flood management systems over the next three years. Meanwhile, the long-term strategy, spanning five years, envisages climate-resilient infrastructure capable of withstanding extreme weather events.

Malik stressed that flood prevention and minimizing loss of life should guide policy-making, adding that riverine flooding, flash flooding, drainage-related flooding, and coastal erosion were all highlighted during the PM-led meeting.

He said that the Prime Minister will personally lead the programme, review implementation and integration updates to ensure that Pakistan is better prepared for extreme weather conditions, both hot and cold.

According to the details of the meeting, Prime Minister Shehbaz directed the authorities concerned to ensure early preparation to prevent rain-related losses in next year’s monsoon and implement the short-term plan presented by the Ministry of Climate Change.

The Prime Minister, presiding over a meeting to review measures to prevent next year’s monsoon damage, approved the short-term plan and directed its immediate implementation.

He asked the Ministry of Climate Change, Ministry of Planning, and NDMA to work in coordination with provincial governments for integrated planning on climate change. He also called for preparations to convene a meeting of the National Water Council to plan a national level plan for water management.

Prime Minister Shehbaz said that, being a developing country, Pakistan had to spend a significant portion of its GDP to deal with the adverse effects of climate change, which could otherwise be used for development projects. He said that, unfortunately, despite an almost negligible contribution to carbon emissions, Pakistan faced the adverse effects of climate change.

The meeting was briefed on global forecasts and indicators for next year’s monsoon, while the Ministry of Climate Change briefed on short-, medium- and long-term plans.

The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Malik, Ahsan Iqbal, Ahad Khan Cheema, Muhammad Aurangzeb, Atola Tarar, and relevant senior officials.