Pakistan hasn’t learned lessons from 2022 deadly floods, experts say

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Millions of people in Pakistan continue to live along the path of floodwaters, showing neither people nor the government have learned any lessons from the 2022 devastating floods that killed 1,737 people, experts said Thursday, as an aid group said half of the victims among 300 people killed by rains since July are children.

Heavy rainfall is currently drenching those areas that had been badly hit by the deluges two years ago.

The charity Save the Children said in a statement that floods and heavy rains have killed more than 150 children in Pakistan since the start of the monsoon season, making up more than half of all deaths in rain-affected areas.

The group said that 200 children have also been injured in Pakistan because of rains, which have also displaced thousands of people. Save the Children also said that people affected by floods were living in a relief camp in Sanghar, a district in the southern Sindh province, which was massively hit by floods two years ago.

“The rains and floods have destroyed 80% of cotton crops in Sanghar, the primary source of income for farmers, and killed hundreds of livestock,” the charity said, and added that it’s supporting the affected people with help from a local partner.

Khuram Gondal, the country director for Save the Children in Pakistan, said that children were always the most affected in a disaster.

“We need to ensure that the immediate impacts of the floods and heavy rains do not become long-term problems. In Sindh province alone, more than 72,000 children have seen their education disrupted,” he said.

Another charity, U.K.-baed Islamic Relief, also said weeks of torrential rains in Pakistan have once again triggered displacement and suffering among communities