Flash Floods in Southern Pakistan Threaten the Future of Education for Millions of Students

The country has been devastated by devastating floods, leaving nearly 2.5 million students out of school, according to a provincial official.

Monsoon rains and melting glaciers in northern mountains caused cataclysmic floods that affected 33 million people and killed at least 1,290 people, including 453 children. Extreme weather, widely attributed to climate change, is still expected to spread to one-third of the country.

In Pakistan, the worst-hit province of Sindh, where at least 492 people were killed and more than 14.5 million people are displaced, devastation threatens the future of education for millions of children.

According to Sindh's education minister, Sardar Ali Shah, 15,000 schools have been damaged by the floods, with 5,000 school buildings currently serving as shelters.

When school buildings are used as shelters, it will take more time for victims to find alternative housing, he said, which will also affect when students will be able to return to school.

A temporary learning center has been established in flood-hit areas, with the local government launching the program on Monday.

After the 2011 floods, which killed over 400 people and affected nearly 9 million others in Sindh, a teacher at a public primary school there told the publication Arab News the province took quite a while to resume lessons.

In the aftermath of this year's floods, parents may have to decide whether to send their children to school or help them with chores or work.

According to officials in the education sector Sindh was “underperforming” from the number of students attending school to their performance in mathematics and or linguistics.

Now, after the devastation of the flash floods the future of education in the country remains one of the top concerns.