Drought

Balochistan is known for experiencing various bouts of drought. However, in the past decade, climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of these droughts. The most recent droughts over the past decade have decimated the socioeconomic conditions of the inhabitants of Balochistan, where agriculture and livestock are the main source of livelihood. While Quetta – the provincial capital of Balochistan – used to be agriculturally rich with fruit and vegetable production, in the last two decades, Quetta and the surrounding area’s environmental conditions have plummeted due to extreme weather phenomena like droughts and other natural disasters.

“When I was a child we received a lot of rain and there weren’t that many diseases. Rain helped with agricultural cultivation. We had a good livelihood thanks to agriculture and were able to provide for our families. The kids always had clothes for Eid [a Muslim religious festival.]”

“During childhood, we used to have so many more trees and there was an abundance of animals as well that we could tie to our trees. There was more greenery on the land where our animals could graze. Water used to fill up from the rainwater that we got naturally. As we grew older, we know the weather changed because there aren’t as many trees now and it is incredibly drier. It used to be cold before, but it’s not as cold now. It used to get hot in April, but now we are feeling the heat start earlier in March because it didn’t rain, which means it became hot earlier versus how nice and cool it used to be.”

Currently, Balochistan is facing a severe water shortage, with groundwater levels receding at an alarming pace. These water shortages have impacted agricultural production. While women were working closely with men in agricultural activities, their work in many cases has been halted by the failure of crops to yield production, which also has an impact on livestock raising.

In the absence of these income-generating activities, malnutrition has become prevalent in the province – mostly among women and children.

“The drought means we can’t help our kids. Illnesses have also spiked in our communities. We have to deal with influenza, high fever, and dry coughs because of the dry weather. ”

As livelihood opportunities disappear due to drought conditions, the very existence of these communities is under threat. It is for this reason that many residents have made the difficult decision to leave their homes, resulting in a large population of internally displaced people and migrants moving to urban centers. Referencing Islamic Relief’s water pond infrastructure (See Figure 8), one woman remarked, “So many people left because there wasn’t enough water. I hope that people will return to the community now that there is an available water source.”

“We want to plant more trees but trees require water and there’s not even enough water for the community members themselves. We can’t handle it.”