DUNYA NEWS – ISLAMABAD The federal government will receive advice from the Experts Committee on Climate Change regarding strategies on the issues related to various aspects of climate change, such as climate finance, adaptation, and loss and damage assessment, after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif gave the order to establish one on Tuesday.
The Prime Minister, who was presiding over the first meeting of the Pakistan Climate Change Council (PCCC) in this location, praised the Ministry of Climate Change for taking the initiative to establish the Climate Change Council and the Minister for Climate Change for advocating on behalf of Pakistan in the international debate on climate change.
He said that the country has been devastated by terrible floods brought on by climate change, particularly in the regions of Sindh and Balochistan.
Pakistan was one of the ten nations most affected by climate change, he stressed, despite contributing less than 1% of the world’s carbon emissions, according to a news release from the PM Media Wing here.
The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of strengthening capacity for accessing climate finance, loss and damage assessment skills, and risk mapping.
In order to limit future damages, he underlined the importance of including risk reduction and adaptability in disaster management plans.
The 18th Constitutional Amendment delegated responsibility for the environment to the federating units, thus the prime minister also emphasised the need for improved coordination among them.
The meeting was informed that this year’s extreme weather conditions in Pakistan, including the severe drought (which dried the Sindh province’s delta region), forest fires, heat waves, glacier melt that was occurring three times faster than usual, glacial outbreak floods, and heavy monsoon rains, were brought on by anthropogenic climate change.
It was revealed that the World Bank has calculated the recent flood losses in Pakistan to be $40 billion in US dollars.
The meeting was informed that Pakistan had 152 extreme weather-related events over the past 20 years, including a 300 percent rise in Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOF).
The persistence of high intensity heatwaves had climbed to 41 days annually, and Pakistan had the world’s hottest cities for three years in a row, with temperatures climbing as high as 53.7 degrees Celsius.
The participants were also informed that Pakistan would have the chance to discuss its position on vulnerability with regard to effects of climate change, water scarcity, food security, sea level rise, and increase in climate-induced migration at the upcoming 27th Conference of Parties (COP) under the United Nations, which will be held in Egypt in November 2022.
The gathering was informed that since Pakistan is the chair of the Group 77 nations, it will also be arguing the case for the member nations with regard to the consequences of climate change.
While praising the federal government’s commitment, the meeting’s attendees underlined the importance of creating a National Adaptation Plan and strictly enforcing current environmental regulations in order to reduce the effects of climate change.
Under the 2017 Pakistan Climate Change Act, the PCCC was established. On August 29, 2022, the current PCCC received a notification. Twenty non-official and 26 official members make up the Council, which is presided over by the Prime Minister.
In order to incorporate climate change concerns into decision-making and implement comprehensive adaptation and mitigation measures, the council’s role is to advise on and coordinate Pakistan’s international responsibilities on climate change and environmental issues.
