Balochistan housing fund diversion could deepen poverty, disaster risks: Report
New Delhi, Aug 11
The World Bank has warned that capping housing assistance and redirecting funds from a multi-billion-rupee resilient housing programme for flood-affected people in Pakistan's Balochistan to infrastructure projects could deepen poverty, increase disaster risks and fuel social tensions, a report has said.
A report published in Dawn highlighted that the World Bank expressed serious concern over the decision to cap housing support and the way issues related to fraud and corruption were being handled.
It said the move had left 119,049 verified and eligible households without identified financing support after housing assistance was capped at 62,966 first-tranche beneficiaries as of June 22, 2026, with subsidy support limited to 97,000 households.
"Based on the socio-economic profile of the eligible household, the risk is not simply that households remain without housing assistance; rather, it is that existing vulnerabilities become mutually reinforcing and deepen over time," according to the report.
The report further highlighted that 84 per cent of eligible beneficiaries are ultra-poor and vulnerable with 28 per cent earning less than $30 per month and another 26 per cent earning between $31 and $70.
The beneficiary profile also showed that 39 per cent are tenants, 37 per cent are daily-wage labourers and 8 per cent are small farmers.
66,120 exclusion-related grievances had been registered in the project's grievance management system by the agreed cut-off date, according to the report.
"With the capping of housing support, eligible but excluded households may face a compounding cycle of vulnerability that not only reinforces poverty but increases it, raises disaster risk and undermines long-term recovery and resilience, diminishing the objectives with which the project was initiated," it said.
It warned that excluding verified beneficiaries could force vulnerable families to divert income from food, healthcare and education towards temporary shelter repairs or resort to debt and sale of productive assets.
— IANS
Reader Comments
It's heartbreaking to see that over 119,000 verified households are left without support. These are real families who lost everything in floods. Capping assistance at 62,966 when so many more need help is a policy failure. The World Bank's warning about poverty and disaster risks compounding is spot on.
39% are tenants and 37% daily-wage labourers - these are people with zero buffer. Diverting funds to infrastructure when people can't even rebuild their homes shows misplaced priorities. Infrastructure is important, but not at the cost of basic human needs. The grievances system having 66,000+ complaints also shows governance issues.
The World Bank report clearly states that 28% of beneficiaries earn less than $30 per month. For such families, losing housing support means they'll have to choose between food and shelter. This isn't just about policy - it's about humanity. Hope Pakistan reconsiders this decision before it's too late.
The report mentions social tensions could increase. When you exclude verified beneficiaries, you're not just failing them individually - you're creating a sense of injustice that can destabilise entire communities. The fact that they still haven't addressed 66,120 grievances is alarming. Transparency is key in such projects.
This is concerning. The ultra-poor will be forced into debt and selling their productive assets just to survive. That's a cycle that's impossible to break. I hope international pressure and the World Bank's warning makes Pakistan reconsider. Climate change isn't going to wait for their infrastructure projects.