National News Desk
Islamabad: The World Bank has approved a USD 300 million loan to help cash-strapped Pakistan resolve climate change problems, health emergencies and solid waste management to reduce the risk of flooding in the country’s financial capital, Karachi, said Thursday in a media report.
The Washington-based lender approved USD 200 million for the Sindh Resilience project and USD 100 million for the Solid Waste Emergency and Efficiency project, the Express Tribune newspaper said, citing an official statement released by the local bank’s office.
These investments would strengthen Pakistan’s efforts to create resilience to natural hazards such as floods and droughts in the province of Sindh and strengthen solid waste management in Karachi to resolve recurrent urban floods and public health emergencies in the region, he added.
The USD 200 million in additional funding for the Sindh Resilience project was approved for USD 100 million, taking the overall cost of the scheme to USD 300 million.
“Building resilience to natural disasters and health emergencies is an important and urgent agenda in Pakistan, that will help save lives and protect the economy,” said World Bank Country Director for Pakistan Najy Benhassine.
The debilitating impact of recent floods in Karachi, droughts and extreme rainfall in Sindh, and of course the COVID-19 pandemic, make it imperative that risk reduction investments strengthen multi-sectoral dialogue and coordination at the city, provincial and national levels to ensure protection of vulnerable communities and fight the spread of disease, he added.
The additional USD 200 million funding for the Sindh Resilience project would help the government better handle environment and disaster threats, including floods, droughts and public health emergencies.
The USD 100 million Solid Waste Emergency and Efficiency Project (SWEEP) will strengthen solid waste management services in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city with more than 16 million residents, and upgrade essential solid waste infrastructure to reduce urban flooding and public health risks.
The project focuses on emergency waste disposal to restore stormwater drainage capacity before the next monsoon season especially in vulnerable communities around drainage and waste collection sites.
The project would improve living standards for at least half a million residents of Karachi and improve security for workers by enforcing safety protocols that improve working conditions. Pakistan received USD 500 million from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank each in June this year to prop up its struggling economy.
Pakistan’s total public debt – domestic and external – was recorded at PKR 36.3 trillion in the financial year 2019-20, up 154 per cent (or Rs 22 trillion) since FY13, when it was recorded at Rs 14.3 trillion, according to official data.