Climate catastrophe: Pakistan to bite the bullet

Today it’s Pakistan, tomorrow it could be your country wherever you live. This is a global crisis ... it requires a global response: this was the message of UN General Secretary Antonio Guterres during his visit to flood-hit Pakistan in September this year. The country has seen unprecedented floods in the last monsoon spell that caused the death of over 1,300 people, and millions displaced. Months later, in November, the world leaders gathered in Sharem El-Sheikh in Egypt at the COP27 to discuss this very problem of achieving climate goals set forth in the Paris Agreement.

What makes COP27 different is the fact that it is the first-ever COP where climate-related repatriation or sometimes known as the loss-and-damage from rich nations is part of the official agenda. Pakistan is positioned to lead these efforts with countries ready to rally behind. As Guterres puts it, “Pakistan is paying the price of something that was created by others.” However, to lead such efforts in the most effective way, it is imperative that Pakistan clearly spells out the climate framework and roadmap that the country is and will follow.

A new United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change report highlights that just 26 of 193 countries that agreed last year to step up their climate actions have followed through with their plans. World’s top two polluters, China and the US, are falling short. Wealthy nations provided less than $25 billion in climate finance in 2020, compared to the almost $70 billion they announced. The global climate finance target is supposed to be $100 billion a year but all the climate financing numbers remain unfair and misleading.

Indeed, the global greenhouse gases (GHG) problem is created by the Global North. The factories of Manchester and New York gave birth to the Industrial Revolution back in the 18^th century, inevitably releasing carbon emissions into the atmosphere. Convenient for the Global North to lecture other countries to move to renewable energy. But have they had a smooth transition towards green energy themselves? Even though the decision has been reversed amid severe criticism, earlier this year, the UK government had authorised multiple licences to fracking companies to burn more fossil fuels, in order to curtail pressure on the energy demand. Although we’re seeing progressive climate change initiatives under Biden’s administration, especially through the new Inflation Reduction Act 2022, not so long ago, Trump called climate change a money-making industry and a hoax, while US Senator’s controlled most of the oil producing companies.

Instead of lecturing developing countries to move to green energy, it is right to say that the Global North must practise what it preaches. However, developing countries must also first take responsibility for their shortcomings in tackling the climate crisis before pointing figures towards other nations, who capitalised from burning fossil fuels since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. It has, indeed, been a collective failure.

Climate-induced disasters have reached tipping points, threatening the very existence of life on planet earth. Yet, this disturbing future need not be set in note. With proactive focus on climate mitigation, adaption, and loss and damage, we have a slight hope for reversing climate change. While Pakistan has every right to receive climate reparations from the Global North, its very own climate narrative has been vulnerable. With current projections, Pakistan’s greenhouse gas emissions are expected to skyrocket by over 400% by 2040, a clear violation of the historic climate Paris Agreement of 2015 to which Pakistan is also a signatory.

There is no doubt that the rich countries, those really responsible, must help Pakistan; but will the financial help end in the right places? Climate diplomacy must first begin at home. Talking about global climate change is important, but less attractive, when policies and climate mitigation and adaptation set-ups at home remain uncertain, mostly fragile. Most importantly, with lack of cohesion among provinces, a progressive climate narrative would never see the light of the day.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 19^th, 2022.

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