After the Flood in Pakistan 38 Berlin Geographical Papers - Freie ...

consists of three overland wires but currently only two are working properly, supplying the
village with power for about two to six hours a day (respectively ten to twelve hours in the
model village). Access to electricity was given to the village in 2005.
About 20% of the houses in Golo Mandhro are in a very bad condition and in need of improvement
that can not be afforded by people on their own. The water supply condition is
generally sufficient to cover the basic needs for drinking water, but nevertheless there are
problems relating to the non-permanent availability of water for the whole community and
the progressive process of salinisation.
However, a majority of households
own local handpumps that were mostly
constructed in 2007. These can be also
used by neighbours without own access.
Occasionally, water shortage affects
the entire village and people
need to fetch water at the next accessible
pump about four kilometres
away. Two shops provide the villagers
with the most necessary goods, and
shopkeepers represent an important
source for short time credits in kind
(cf. Box 4). Mobile-network-coverage
in the village is very low. There are
only a few places with an existing connection which makes communication within and outside
the community unreliable. Three village schools provide education up to 8 th Source: photograph © Narges Lankarani, February 16, 2011
Fig. 5.9: Adverse road situation in Golo Mandhro
class.
Teachers as respected persons are often asked to solve small disputes among community
members. It should be noted, however, that most of the village girls do not attend school
at all.
Income activities in the village are diverse with a majority of households engaged in agriculture
(40-50%). Others are employed in government jobs (20-25%) or practise insecure
jobs in the private sector, mainly on daily wage basis (20-25%). Most of the households own
at least a small piece of land which allows them practicing subsistence farming (cf. Fig.
5.10).
The community has organised itself with the help of the National Rural Support Programme
(NRSP) and established two village councils representing men and women to discuss issues
of concern, to identify their priorities and to decide on needed infrastructure measures.
The most important activity that was implemented by support of the NRSP was a small
protective bund to shield agriculture from salt water intrusion. This, however, needs
reinforcement, and it has been suggested by villagers that in order to enable sustainable
agricultural practices and to improve the handling of crises, i.e. to manage the exposure to
flood related risks, a protective bund connecting all three surveyed villages over a length
of about 60 km needs to be constructed. These village councils could also function as
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