Pakistan, Nov. 12 -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved contingent disaster financing (CDF) facilities totaling $500 million under its policy-based lending to help Pakistan to withstand and respond to disasters.

The CDF will provide prompt budget support following eligible disaster events to help reduce the economic and fiscal impacts, according to press release received here Wednesday.

Floods, earthquakes, and other disasters cause Pakistan an estimated $2 billion in annual average losses. The 2022 floods alone caused $14.9 billion in direct damage and $15.2 billion in economic losses, pushing as many as 9.1 million people into poverty.

Poor and rural communities have less capacity to recover, while women and girls are disp...