Islamabad: Severe monsoon flooding in Sindh, Pakistan, has led to the closure of over 1,300 schools, impacting approximately 230,000 children, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) reported. The floods have brought significant destruction, with 228 schools completely demolished and more than 450 still submerged under floodwater.

According to United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, the ongoing crisis has exacerbated the educational emergency in Pakistan, where over 26.2 million children are already out of school. Abdullah Fadil, UNICEF Representative in Pakistan, expressed concern over the repeated climate shocks that are preventing children from continuing their education. He emphasized the urgent need for the floodwaters to recede so that children can return to school and highlighted the risk of prolonged school closures which may deter them from returning to education altogether.

Since the beginning of the monsoon season on July 1, the floods have claimed 76 lives in Sindh, half of them children. The floods have also displaced 140,000 children and their families across 10 districts in the province. UNICEF teams are actively conducting rapid needs assessments and collaborating with the government and local partners to develop immediate and long-term plans to restore educational access and support the early recovery of affected communities.

This crisis follows the devastating floods of 2022, which also severely impacted Sindh, destroying vital infrastructure including health and education facilities overnight. The province is still recovering from last year’s damage as it faces new challenges from the current weather conditions.

Fadil urged for immediate investment in climate-resilient education and services for children to address the ongoing crisis effectively. He called for a collaborative effort to innovate and adapt solutions that will help mitigate the impact of climate change on vulnerable populations, particularly children in Pakistan, who are ranked as being at ‘extremely high risk’ as per UNICEF’s Children’s Climate Risk Index.