Before the ballot later this year, the ruling party in Sindh hopes to settle about 50,000 flood-affected families in new, more resilient homes with ownership rights. It intends to continue until all families in temporary shelters are back in their homes.

For better outcomes, Sindh Government has decided to give preference to women for the cash transfers to construct the vanished or refurbish the damaged dwellings.

The provincial government has joined hands with the World Bank to create Sindh People’s Housing Finance company (SPHF) for the purpose. The World Bank, which has a long history (not always pleasant) of multiple social and physical infrastructure projects in Sindh, showed sensitivity towards the plight of people, post floods.

The 2022 floods washed away much of whatever little poor had. Sindh suffered 83 per cent of the destruction of houses in Pakistan during floods. The bank, the Sindh government noted, was instrumental in galvanising donor support at the Geneva Conference in January this year, besides committing $500 million for housing reconstruction in Sindh.

Being a partner, the bank brought management/technical skills to the table and tried and tested templates of public interest macro projects in different countries. If implemented as planned, the project could turn the mammoth housing challenge into an opportunity for the ruling Pakistan Peoples’ Party to showcase its potential and the zest of poor Sindhis to pounce on any chance to improve their fortunes.

The provincial government has ambitious plans to settle the flood-affected that may materialise or turn out to be political gimmickry in election year

Aware of the attention of compassionate global watchers like the United Nations, which threw its weight behind Pakistan to mobilise funds for relief and rehabilitation, Sindh Government was keen to put its best foot forward. The provincial government had already made a mark by handling the pandemic way better than expected.

The government vested Khalid Mehmood Sheikh, an officer with extensive experience in collaborative mega projects, with the responsibility of spearheading the initiative. In an exclusive interaction, Mr Sheikh shared details of the project that he said enjoyed the ownership and support of the federal and provincial leadership.

In his capacity as the chief executive, he was confident that his team would counter all roadblocks and deliver on time. “Yes, the challenge is both huge and complex, but it’s also exciting and doable. We intend speed as desperate families are eagerly waiting for the help to arrive. I am putting together a dedicated team of professionals willing to go beyond their call of duty to initiate a process of changing the lives of many millions within months.

“The plan is not just to transfer Rs300,000 to those who lost homes but to hold hands in the reconstruction process through implementation partners, help arrange bank credit if the building cost exceeds the grant and provide the land title to the affected family that has constructed/repaired their house. We believe the collective value of assets thus created and transferred to poor families will add up to a trillion rupees.”

He said that the first survey has already been completed, and the process of validation of the data gathered is in progress with the help of National Database and Registration Authority and Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission.

Approximately 350,000 multi-hazard resilient core housing units will be supported by the project, benefitting 1.4m people

He mentioned five non-governmental organisations: Sindh Rural Support Organisation, National Rural Support Programme, Hands, Thardeep Rural Development Programme and Sustainable Actions to Access Financial Capital Opportunities, which are on board.

They will get 3.5pc of the price of the house built under their supervision for their service, which comes to Rs10,500 per unit for a standard Rs300,000 basic house.

To ensure transparency, besides multiple layers of verifications, digital platforms will be used for all payments. The total funding requirement has been estimated at $2.8bn.

The World Bank has committed $500m and the provincial government has chipped in $227m, which leaves a financial gap of $1.35bn that SPHF hopes to raise on the strength of its proficiency. Mr Sheikh shared many documents with details of district-wise units to be constructed on a generic resilient housing design adjusted to the specific needs of beneficiaries.

Responding to a request for comments on the initiative, the World Bank office in Islamabad responded thus: “According to the post-disaster needs assessment, almost 1.7m houses in Sindh were either partially damaged or fully destroyed. As a result, millions of families are living in temporary shelters.

“Approximately 350,000 multi-hazard resilient core housing units will be supported by the project, benefitting an estimated 1.4m people, roughly half of whom are women.

“Additionally, an estimated 400,000 beneficiaries will be trained in multi-hazard resilient construction techniques through capacity-building activities. These beneficiaries will be selected based on detailed field surveys. The World Bank follows a strict monitoring and evaluation system to ensure transparency in all our projects.”

Dr Noman Ahmed, an architect and city planner associated with NED University, has not been in the loop. When pressed for comments, he suggested some generic points, many of which have already been incorporated.

“The project must undertake site suitability studies before starting reconstruction work. An exercise of the physical survey, assessment of ownership records and need analysis of target households’ current and future requirements must be done.

“Internalising the wealth of experience of active small community-based organisations like Urban Resource Center and Indus Resource Center would benefit. The SPHF may consider developing an endowment fund where the bulk of available finance could be invested and actual work may be carried out from the proceeds for financial sustainability.”

When reached over the phone for comments Hasan Bakhshi, former chairman All Pakistan Builders Association, was caught unaware. He criticised the provincial government for excluding builders from the whole exercise. In the current environment, he did not expect investors’ interest.

“To me, SPHF is nothing more than political gimmickry in an election year. Low-cost housing is particularly difficult. The fate of the Naya Pakistan housing scheme of the last government and many more before is well known. Such projects start with a bang but end with a whimper.”

He also raised the issue of the weak reputation of the Sindh government in financial affairs. “Take my word, behind the smokescreen of merit, only party loyalists will get placement and contracts in the mega project.”

An expert had a different opinion. “The management of the Pandemic by the Sindh government was pleasantly surprising and did change its public perception. Motivations apart, I think if the government wants to, it can actually deliver.”

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2023