Minister underscores SCO role in climate resilience

Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman has underscored the role that the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) can play at the regional level in achieving shared goals related to environmental sustainability and climate resilience.

The minister represented Pakistan at the fourth Meeting of the Heads of the Ministers and Agencies of SCO member states responsible for environmental protection, organised virtually by India.

During the meeting, she noted that the sustainability of life on earth and the overall socio-economic development of current and future generations were under threat.

“We all agree that constructive cooperation on bold climate and environmental issues is critical to actively move the needle and bridge the gap between the pledges and pipelines that we all make multilaterally, as well as the gap between ambitions and actions,” she said.

Sherry drew the forum’s attention to Pakistan’s position as one of the 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change, despite contributing less than 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

“We are on the front lines of climate change, braving disastrous floods, unlivable heatwaves, and fast-melting glaciers,” she said.

The minister spoke about the catastrophic floods that hit Pakistan last year, inundating one-third of the country and impacting 33 million people, causing over $30 billion in economic losses and damages.

The minister further noted that climate change had become a high priority for Pakistan on all ministerial agendas, and both the premier and foreign minister were working to address the issue at the national and global levels.

“We have intensified our efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change and implement large-scale nature-based interventions, as well as combat pollution,” she said.

“Despite the fact that our policies are aligned with SCO goals and commitments made in the Paris Agreement, implementation of our collective plans fall short as the climate clock is ticking faster than we imagined,” she added.

The minister shared details about Pakistan’s recent policies and programmes, including the National Clean Air Policy, National Hazardous Waste Management Policy, Clean Green Pakistan, Living Indus Initiative, creation of new national parks and expansion of protected areas, and federal-level regulations on plastics.
During her address, she proposed specific actions for the forum to consider, such as establishing a technical working group to exchange information and best practices on common issues, exploring opportunities for capacity building and knowledge sharing, and developing regional mechanisms for climate financing and carbon markets.

She urged the SCO members to raise their voice for reforming the international financial architecture to transform access pathways that remain blocked for climate finance delivery to developing countries, especially those on the frontlines of accelerated climate stress.

She observed that the SCO was a crucial multilateral forum for cooperation and collaboration, and that Pakistan remained committed to engaging with it to create momentum in climate action.

The meeting was led by a ministerial delegation from the SCO member states – China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Russia, and Uzbekistan.
In a joint statement, the SCO members emphasised the need to strengthen cooperation in the field of information exchange, conservation of biological resources, adaptation to climate change, and mitigation of its consequences.