KARACHI:
With the arrival of summer in Sindh, the city of Jacobabad recorded a life-threatening temperature of 52 degrees Celsius — a temperature hotter than the human body can withstand. While Pakistan’s contribution to the carbon footprint of the world is almost insignificant, it is one of the regions most affected by climate change. A significant increase of 0.57 degrees Celsius in Pakistan’s annual mean temperature has been recorded from 1901 to 2000. As a result, the country is likely to experience frequent occurrence of severe cyclones and storms. Such events, accompanied by rising sea levels, could threaten coastal cities such as Karachi, Thatta and Badin.
Our country is highly vulnerable to climate change due to its geographic location, high dependence on agriculture and water resources, low adaptability of the people, and weak systems of emergency preparedness. Furthermore, the Asian Development Bank and World Bank have estimated that Pakistan is facing up to $3.8 billion in annual economic loss due to climate change.
The US and other First World countries, who continue to contribute excessively to the ever-growing carbon footprint, must take climate change more seriously because its consequences are not the same around the world. Even though Pakistan’s efforts for fighting climate change have been significant, especially under Imran Khan’s leadership, the responsibility solely doesn’t lie on us alone. It is only through a joint international effort that we can bring about some radical change. The international community must recognise the urgency of the matter and look for shared solutions.
Aisha Manzoor
Karachi
Published in The Express Tribune, July 27th, 2021.
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