PM urges world to deliver on climate pledges
Officers of the government of Egypt and Pakistan embassy including the ambassador received the prime minister at the airport on Sunday, November 6. PHOTO: APP
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif left Islamabad on Sunday for the Egyptian tourist resort of Sharm El-Sheikh to participate in the “Climate Implementation Summit” being held on Monday and Tuesday.
The Sharm El-Sheikh summit is part of the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP-27). Shehbaz will lead a high-level Pakistan delegation at the two-day conference.
At the invitation of the Egyptian Presidency of COP-27, Shehbaz will co-chair, along with his Norwegian counterpart, a roundtable on “Climate Change and the Sustainability of Vulnerable Communities” on Tuesday (tomorrow).
According to the Prime Minister’s Office Media Wing, Shehbaz will also participate in other high-level events, including the UN secretary general’s roundtable to launch the ‘Early Warning Systems for Executive Action Plan’.
On Monday (today), he will also attend the ‘Middle East Green Initiative Summit’, being hosted by the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Saudi Arabia Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“Off to Egypt to attend #COP27,” Prime Minister Shehbaz wrote in one of a series of tweets. “COP27 being held in Egypt can be a watershed in humanity's fight against climate change & global warming,” he added.
Shehbaz pointed out that extreme climatic events in Pakistan and the Horn of Africa this year had showcased a globalisation of the climate change, warning that turning a blind eye to its lethal effects would be criminal.
Read Flood-hit Pakistan seeks ‘compensation’ at COP27
Stressing that “we are asking for climate justice”, the prime minister urged the world to treat Pakistan as a case study. He added that lack of funds and price-hike could impede Pakistan’s flood recovery efforts.
“Our post-disaster needs assessment has shown that Pakistan's journey to recovery & rehabilitation can be held back by public debt, rising international energy & food prices and lack of access to adaption funds,” he said.
“I urge the world to deliver on its commitment on climate finance and loss and damage fund. Without financial support, the developing countries will continue to remain exposed to the multifarious threats of climate change,” he added.
The COP27 is taking place at a time when millions of people in Pakistan, and millions more in other parts of the world, are facing severe adverse impacts of climate change, the Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a related press release.
The COP is the supreme decision-making body under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which meets on annual basis to review and advance collective efforts to address climate change.
As a main stakeholder, Pakistan would continue to, proactively, make positive contributions to the global climate change debate, negotiations and collective action, the Foreign Office said.