November 11, 2005
by Kevin Caruso
Pakistan will need an estimated $5.2 billion for relief and reconstruction from the October 8, 2005 earthquake. But donations have been well below anticipated and needed levels to date.
The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank estimates that Pakistan will need $3.5 billion just for reconstruction.
So far, $2.4 billion has been pledged, but some of the pledges are for goods and services and will not be realized into cash.
The United Nations has also struggled with their donation campaign for earthquake relief in the region. To date, the U.N. has only received solid commitments for 15% of the $550 million that they are seeking for relief operations.
And while organizations and the Pakistan government try to raise adequate funds for relief, hundreds of thousands of earthquake survivors are still homeless, and some are completely isolated in mountainous regions that have been cut off by landslides.
The Pakistan earthquake thus remains an emergency, and many people will die in the winter months from exposure, starvation, and/or disease unless adequate funds are received.
