Bittersweet Recovery for Afghan Refugees in Pakistan

It took mere hours to destroy the homes of nearly 22,200 people. When monsoon floodwaters ripped through the Azakhel refugee camp in northwest Pakistan this past August, 6,000 Afghan refugee families were made instantly homeless. With no place to go and hearing that the camp would not be rebuilt, survivors began to displace to other camps, made the heart-wrenching decision to return to Afghanistan, or sought out options in cities and towns throughout Pakistan.

For a group of 74 families, the decision to try to settle in the town of Attock — a couple hours west on the Grand Trunk Road — was motivated by the fact that they knew people there. These families are Turkmen Afghans, and many Turkmen already live in Attock town. Attock is also the home of one of UUSC's partner organizations, Barakat, which helps Afghan refugee families get quality education.

I visited the flood-affected Afghan refugees in Attock in December. I went to Barakat schools and met the students. I spoke with their fathers, and then with their mothers. I visited their rented homes, including the home of the Murad family, which left the devastated Azakhel camp in the aftermath of the flooding.

Mr. Murad, in his late 30s and the father of seven children — one in the womb — fled to Attock with his wife, their children, and his elderly father. Life is bittersweet for Mr. Murad and his family right now. On the one hand, he is among a larger community that is doing what it can to look after his welfare. His Turkmen Afghan neighbors have helped his family find a small place to rent for about $30 a month and work as a subcontracted carpet weaver. Barakat has given Mr. Murad's family, and all of the other 74 flood-displaced families, two small disbursals of cash to help meet their daily housing, food, and health-care needs. Barakat has encouraged the newcomers to send their children to Barakat schools, free of charge.

On the other hand, their recovery is arduous. Back in the Azakhel camp, all of the Murad children attended school. Mr. Murad worked as a carpenter, and that was enough to support his family. But in Attock, making ends meet means that the Murad kids, along with Mrs. Murad, have to stay home to help weave carpets. Mr. Murad goes out in search of daily labor jobs. If he's lucky, he'll earn about $2.40 a day, but a recent injury to his hand has kept him home of late. The Murads are worried about their situation. They want their kids to attend school, and Mr. Murad's father's health is failing.

The Murads' situation — and others like it — reinforces the importance of the partnership that UUSC and Barakat have formed to help flood-affected Afghan refugee families in Attock reestablish their livelihoods and become proprietors of their own businesses. With support for capital investments, the newly arrived families from Azakhel camp will be able to use their existing expertise to reestablish their lives in Attock and send their kids back to school.

Learn more about UUSC's response to the devastating monsoon flooding in Pakistan.