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CWA # 1538, 18 November 2024
Pakistan and Climate Change: Four Takeaways

  Nuha Aamina

On 12 November, Prime Minister Shehbaz Shariff attended the COP 29 World Leaders Climate Action Summit,  in Baku, Azerbaijan. On the sidelines, he voiced concerns about the developing states at the Climate Finance Round Table Conference hosted by Pakistan. Additionally, he also delivered an address at the Glaciers 2025: Actions for Glaciers, hosted by Tajikistan. 

The COP 29 summit has reopened the discussion on climate change in Pakistan. Here are four takeaways from the ongoing discussion at the summit and the media. 

1.  Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate change
Almost every year Pakistan deals with seasonal flooding which wreaks havoc across nearly all four provinces. This annual affair displaces local communities and even destroys infrastructure. The most devastating flood that hit Pakistan was back in 2022 which submerged a third of the country. The rains were 190 per cent more than its 30-year average, at 390.7 mm.  According to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, about 33 million people were affected by the floods and had no access to essentials, worsening the existing inequities. The World Bank estimated the damages to be around USD 30 billion. However, Pakistan received only USD 2.8 billion out of the USD 11 billion pledged by foreign donors.

There’s no sense of equity as the country is among those that barely contribute to global emissions however, it has to suffer the impacts of climate change and bear the costs of restructuring and rehabilitating its citizens. The 2022 Punjab floods which caused USD 30 billion to the state exchequer is evidence enough. 

Pakistan also has to deal with extreme temperature changes. Temperatures exceeded 52 degrees Celsius or 125.6 degrees Fahrenheit in the Sindh province in 2024. The hot temperatures not only pose a challenge to already dry regions but also, lead to glacial melt and snow melt.

Since 1960, the rivers dependent on glaciers for their flow have shrunk by 23 per cent. The rapid glacial melt has led to the formation of 3,000 glacial lakes in the North of Pakistan, thereby posing a threat to 7 million lives.

2. Pakistan’s focus on climate resilience and mitigation
At the summit, Pakistan had a two-point agenda among others, the first one was aimed at enhancing the country’s climate resilience by emphasizing emission reduction to maintain global temperatures below 1.5 degrees and mobilizing climate investment to promote climate mitigation measures and even addressing damages and losses, among others. 

The Prime Minister called upon developed countries to support developing states, not through debt but through climate financing. He remarked how these countries states are not just vulnerable to the devastating effects of climate change but are also short on resources. In this manner, the PM called upon developed states to provide funding to the tune of USD 6.8 trillion to deliver their end of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), under the climate action plan. It is worth noting that the World Bank has estimated that Pakistan alone requires an estimated USD 348 billion to attain climate resilience by 2030. He called upon the donor states to provide 0.7 per cent of the developing countries’ GNP to address its climate challenges. 

In his address, the PM also emphasized the need for reform within the international financial structures. It would help establish a level-playing field where no state is left out in the global response to climate change. He also called for a balanced approach, to uphold climate justice by upholding the principles of Equity and Common and the principle of Differentiated Responsibility, which establishes a distinction in state responsibility to the global environment based on their economic development. 

At the Glaciers 2025: Actions for Glaciers, the Prime Minister delivered an address. He noted how 7,000 glaciers exist in Pakistan and how they contributed to 60-70 per cent of the Indus River’s water. In this regard, he underscored the need for countries to make a conscious effort towards protecting glaciers from pollution and prevent snow melt. As Pakistan is among the most climate-change-affected countries, he stressed the need for assistance in surveilling glacier health, establishing early warning systems, endorsing climate-resilient practices, and providing capital for alternative water solutions. 

3. Pakistan’s strategies and its effectiveness
In 2017 the government adopted the Climate Change Act however, it needs to be amended. Though the Act aims at fulfilling the internationally agreed-upon conventions and addressing the climate change effects, it has no concrete measures in place to achieve them. Besides this other policies such as the National Climate Change Policy (NCCP) and the Framework for Implementation of Climate Change Policy (2014-2030) are in place. These policies have been implemented to tackle climate-related challenges, particularly in the agriculture and forestry domain. Not much progress was recorded on the ground level as there has not been much relief provided to the beneficiaries. 

The efficacy of the policies is questionable as Lahore ranked among the top cities with the worst air quality. 

4. The failure of governance and the unrelenting rich
Besides seeking external financing for its climate losses, Pakistan needs to take concrete steps toward addressing its climate issue as it could further exacerbate Pakistan’s domestic situation. With many countries skipping the COP29, it questions the relevance and effectiveness of the platform. As the poor countries bear the disproportionate burden of climate change the wealthy states continue to fund polluting industries, thereby providing a stark representation that these powers prioritize areas where their interests lie. The country is not ready to deal with climate-induced disasters as it already grapples with economic, political, and security instability. It’s dependency on foreign funding. A country like Pakistan will be unable to invest in climate-resilient mechanisms as it has other several problems to address. 

References
“'Need of the hour': PM urges increased climate financing for developing nations on COP29 sidelines,” The News International, 12 November 2024
Akhtar Soomro & Ariba Shahid, “Pakistan temperatures cross 52 C in heatwave ,” Reuters, 28 May 2024
Georgina Rannard, “How Pakistan floods are linked to climate change,” BBC, 2 September 2024
“Devastating floods in Pakistan,” UNICEF, 25 August 2023
Ali Tauqeer Shah, "Negotiating climate finance,” Dawn, 7 November 2024
Faraz Khan, "Can climate change Pakistan's economy?,” Dawn, 28 April 2024
Hasnain Ibrahim Kazmi, "Pakistan climate change act — challenges,” The Express Tribune, 30 June 2024
“Debt cannot become acceptable new normal in climate financing: PM Shehbaz,” Dawn, 12 November 2024
Mohamed Yahya, “COP29 must go beyond promises,” The Express Tribune, 12 November 2024
“Climate Pessimism,” The Nation, 12 November 2024

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