Pakistan, Aug. 15 -- The government's assurance that Balochistan's flood-hit families have not been abandoned would have carried greater weight had it not followed weeks of confusion over precisely who remains entitled to housing assistance.

The Planning Ministry insists that all 68,992 houses classified as fully damaged under the post-disaster assessment remain covered and that more than 26,000 have already been completed. It also argues, reasonably, that reconstruction cannot mean houses alone. Roads, irrigation channels, schools, health facilities and water systems are equally necessary if vulnerable communities are to withstand the next disaster.

The World Bank points to a considerably larger pool of verified eligible households and...