KARACHI: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a $650 million loan for Pakistan on Wednesday to help it rebuild its infrastructure, ravaged by last year's floods that also killed nearly 2,000 people.
Separately, the World Bank approved a $125 million loan to help the government provide cash transfers to more than a million flood-affected households, the bank said in a statement.
Last summer's devastating floods caused around $10 billion in damage, displaced millions and destroyed crops and livestock, and Pakistan is still feeling the impact.
"This assistance comes in direct response to a request from the Government of Pakistan," said Juan Miranda, director general for ADB's Central and West Asia Department.
The loan will be used for the reconstruction of damaged roads, bridges, irrigation systems and flood and drainage protection work, the Manila-based bank said in a statement.
The World Bank loan is directed towards the government's Citizen's Damage Compensation Program which was launched in 2010 and has already provided around 1.4 million families with cash grants of 20,000 rupees each ($234) to cover their immediate needs.
Millions remain displaced by the floods and many who managed to return to their villages have few ways of making money to rebuild homes or resume their children's education, depending mostly on aid groups.
Pakistan has received more than $1.3 billion out of almost $2 billion needed in humanitarian aid since last year's floods, according to the United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The civilian government has been widely criticised by the public for its inefficient response to the disaster.
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