<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/12/pakistan-floods-impact-years-crops-farms>
"Muhammad Naeem Khoso lost thousands acres of crops when the torrential
downpours that devastated Pakistan in July and August turned his land in
Jaffarabad into a lake.
“I had invested 40 million rupees (£163,042) into different crops, mostly
rice,” he said. “I lost almost everything. The floods have ruined and washed
away everything.”
Khoso said he had never seen so much rain in his life, and that water was
coming from everywhere. Now, he added, “I fear for a food crisis in Balochistan
and beyond.”
Across the province crops, homes and livelihoods were washed away by flood
waters. Agriculture is the primary source of income for many in the districts
of Jaffarabad, Sohbatpur, Nasirabad and Jhal Magsi yet 70% of crops have been
destroyed in the floods.
Nationwide, at least 4m acres of crops have been destroyed, part of the
economic devastation estimated by the Pakistani prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif,
at $30bn-$35bn (£27bn-£31.6bn), and while the heavy rainfall which began in
July has stopped, many areas in Balochistan and Sindh provinces remain flooded.
Children play and swim in fields where green crops of rice should have been
swaying in the air, ready for harvest.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, has warned the effects of the
floods will be felt for years to come with the country “on the verge of a
public health disaster”, and the UN’s Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a report last week that it expected
increased food insecurity."
Via Doug Senko.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
