FCDO has collaborated with IDARA-E-TALEEM-O-AAGAHI (ITA) and  Sindh Education and Literacy Department (SELD) for the implementation of the project titled “Recovery for Foundational learning: Flood response in Sindh’. The project goal is to support the Go-Sindh initiative in rapid recovery for learning through Back to School kits for students, health and hygiene kits and accelerated foundational learning

NDMA, estimates 33 million people/or 1 in 7 affected by the floods, 8 million are displaced, 1,700 people have lost their lives, 1/3rd of the effected population are children.  The natural catastrophe has led to the rise in the national poverty rate by 3.7 to 4.0 %, pushing 8.4 – 9.1 million people into poverty. The floods have disproportionately hit the poorest households in poorest areas. Those areas of the country where human development outcomes were lowest even before the floods have been hardest hit.

The 2022 flooding has exposed institutional and systemic challenges, including poor urban planning and water resource management, lack of systems for infrastructure maintenance, complex governance, structural inequalities, and limited disaster risk reduction capacity.

As the country recovers from this terrible disaster, there is an opportunity to do things differently and to create a better future, especially for areas of the country that had not benefited from the development of the last two decades.

The emergency response programme being initiated in collaboration with FCDO, ITA and SELD is a significant step to cater the devastation and destruction in 23 districts of Sindh, as almost 50% population and 3 million school going children have been impacted by the floods.  Out of 44, 217 total schools in the flood effected area, 5,589 have been fully damaged,11,852 partially damaged and 4,724 converted into IDP Shelters until normalcy returns; the latter have implications of already rundown school facilities exposed to severe wear and tear, that needs urgent repairs.

Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office works as a force for good in the world to reduce poverty and tackle global challenges with our international partners. The current project of FCDO is an emergency response to flood afflicted Pakistan in 2022 as its aftermath led to major education dislocation and destruction particularly affecting the poorest children in Sindh.

THREE RAPID EMERGENCY & RECOVERY INTERVENTIONS IN THE PROGRAMME

Intervention I: Back-to-school kits for 40,000 students & 8000 dignity kits for adolescent girl students/ female teachers, health & hygiene kits (4000), teaching-learning materials (ECE-Grade 8), mini libraries & recreation kits (800) – Girls, Minorities, Children with Disabilities and Children in Early Child Marriages are a critical focus for inclusive recovery

Intervention II: Establishing learning recovery camps for teaching at the right level (TARL), Chalo-Parho-Barho (CPB) over 55-60 days, for addressing foundational literacy and numeracy for 30,000 in-school children at risk and out-of-school children (drop-outs & never enrolled) ages 6-13 years

Intervention III: Implementing area and evidence-based actions in selected two flood-affected villages Momal Ji Marri (Ghotki) and Mahmud Panhwar (Shikarpur) of two union councils for “all children learning every child counts-every house matters” (age 6-16 years).

The challenges are complex but ITA teams are determined to outcomes-based transformative actions. 

ITA teams are committed to bringing back the children of districts Ghotki and Shikarpur “back to school”. The number of schools finalized and verified with SELD/District Education Department teams is 391. We are inching closer to our goal every day with our vision which is “To actively pursue universal access to education as a comprehensive learning experience for human evolution and to promote education as a comprehensive process for human and social transformation” for a better tomorrow”!