ISLAMABAD, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan has suffered estimated damages of about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars from recent floods that caused large-scale destruction across the country, Pakistani Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has said.
Speaking at an event to launch the ministry's monthly development update and the preliminary flood damage assessment report on Friday, Iqbal said a detailed post-disaster needs assessment exercise is underway to determine the exact economic losses resulting from the calamity.
He said the initial estimate of damages stands at about 822 billion rupees (about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars), including 430 billion rupees (about 1.53 billion dollars) in the agricultural sector and 307 billion rupees (about 1.1 billion dollars) in infrastructure.
Iqbal said the floods also damaged around 229,000 houses nationwide.
He added that about 2,811 km of roads, 790 bridges, 129 public buildings, 2,267 educational institutions, 243 health facilities, 1,297 commercial areas, and 86 water infrastructure sites, including waterworks, sources, and reservoirs, have also been damaged.
According to the preliminary assessment, the overall damages are expected to reduce Pakistan's GDP growth by 0.3 to 0.7 percentage points in the current fiscal year, which starts from July 2025 to June 2026, lowering the outlook to 3.5 to 3.9 percent from the earlier target of 4.2 percent. The report also estimated that unemployment could rise by about 220,000 workers due to the disaster.
"In agriculture, we estimate a loss of approximately 3 million to 3.4 million bales of cotton, around 1 million tons of rice, and between 1.3 million and 3.3 million tons of sugarcane," Iqbal said, adding that these estimates depend on the duration of flooding in different areas.
"Where the water receded quickly, the loss was limited, but in areas where it remained stagnant for long, the damage was more severe," he explained.
Iqbal said the preliminary estimates will guide the government's ongoing rehabilitation and recovery efforts, with a focus on rebuilding critical infrastructure, restoring livelihoods, and enhancing resilience to future climate-induced disasters. ■