PM terms Indus basin ground zero of climate mitigation

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar said on Sunday Pakistan’s climate challenge was primarily a water challenge which needed immediate redressal and highlighted the importance of adapting the Indus Basin to the impacts of climate because majority of the population was linked to this mighty river.

Addressing an event on ‘Living Indus Initiative’ at the Pakistan Pavilion as part of the United Nations 28th Conference of Parties (COP-28), the prime minister explained that the ‘Living Indus’ was as an umbrella initiative aimed at restoring the ecological health of the Indus within the Pakistan borders.

“The government of Pakistan is clear on its priorities with ‘Living Indus’. This umbrella initiative emerges from extensive consultation with stakeholders, resulting in a set of 25 living interventions that emphasise nature-based solutions and ecosystem-based adaptation approaches,” he said.

“More important is that the Living Indus initiative seeks to mobilise a moment that prepared and restored a healthy Indus for today and tomorrows. And we are here to collaborate and give voice to our rivers,” he said. “The Indus feeds us and if we do not take care of it.”

This initiative, according to the prime minister, envisaged a minimum indicative investment between $11 and $17 billion over the next 15 years. He also referred to the ‘Recharge Pakistan’ project as the first concrete step towards the ‘Living Indus’.

“This flagship project with an international climate finance of nearly $78 million is central to our efforts in reducing future flooding and drought impacts,” he added. “The ‘Recharge Pakistan’ project will not only benefit millions of our citizens but also serve as a model for climate innovation on a global scale.”

Kakar stressed that Pakistan was the 8th most vulnerable country to the impacts of climate change in the world. He called upon various stakeholders to contribute towards the global efforts of addressing the climate change issue by raising voice in their articles, sermons, addresses and poetry.

L&D Fund
Later, talking to the students of Pakistan’s orphan school KORT Education, who won the prestigious Zayed Sustainability Prize here at the COP-28, Kakar said that the students had made every Pakistani including, he himself proud as they have done a wonderful job.

Also, in an interview with Sky News Arabia, Kakar termed the announcement of $30 billion Loss and Damage Fund “a good start in the right direction” at the COP-28. He added that Pakistan had advocated for the fund at the in COP-27 in Egypt assist the developing countries in facing the climate challenges.

“The operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund is a testament that the developed countries have morally accepted the argument that world must support those countries that are not responsible for the climate damage,” he said.

“Pakistan has always been advocating that the countries who have not contributed to the carbon emissions but remained one of the worst affected by the climate disaster must be compensated in terms of mitigation, climate adaptation and receiving climate finance to address all those challenges.”

And in another interview with a leading Abu Dhabi-based newspaper Aletihad, Kakar hoped that the $30 billion fund initiative by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would be translated into tangible projects, especially in the Global South.

He stressed the need for a global contribution to the effort to counter climate challenge. “It is not just the UAE, which should cater to climate mitigation,” he opined. For Pakistan, he added, the climate change was a “national security challenge” and a shared global issue.

Read Pakistan’s stance on climate finance for developing countries acknowledged at COP28: PM

The prime minister emphasised that climate change was a common challenge to all, whether it was a small nation or a large nation. He warned that one could not rely on assumption that drought would only affect a particular country or the melting of a glacier would occur only in certain regions.

“Yes, there will be more vulnerable countries, but that vulnerability does not protect others. Climate change is changing its face, shape, and form, affecting more or less the entire globe,” he said. “Rather than being judgemental, focus should be on resolving the challenge,” he said.

Kakar highlighted the importance of closely watching scientific developments in the climate domain. “The buzzwords of one decade would be obsolete in another. We have to think that the change will be kaleidoscopic, and it will be quite speedy. We have to be vigilant about the scientific developments.”

He also outlined Pakistan’s efforts for sustainability and in climate fight, noting that the country could also benefit from the UAE-led climate fund. “Pakistan, I presume, would be one of the beneficiaries of such funds, particularly when it comes from a brotherly country like the UAE,” he said.

He hailed the UAE for hosting of the global climate conference and congratulated President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed for holding “such a fabulous event”. He underscored the long and sustainable partnership between two countries in climate mitigation and others areas.

He said that both the countries had signed a number of bilateral agreements in the last few days. One of the contributing and guiding principles in translating all these agreements would be the consideration of climate change problems, he noted.

“The UAE plays a leading role in the region. There are plenty of opportunities around the region, where Pakistan contributes with its youth and their entrepreneurial and professional skills in diverse sectors,” he added.

Gaza war
Talking about the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, Kakar called for creating a “humanitarian corridor”. He told Sky News Arabia that the senseless violence perpetrated by Israel should immediately be stopped because it could “engulf the entire region if not stopped”.

Talking about the Afghan nationals’ repatriation process, the prime minister said that there were around 1 million undocumented Afghan refugees in Pakistan, adding: “It is our duty to regulate movement through documentation.”

Kakar said Kashmir issue remained unresolved for the last seven decades, adding that Pakistan desired peace and resolution of the issue.

However, he continued, “these feelings must be reciprocated by the India”. he added. The issue “needs to be resolved according to the Security Council resolutions.”

On the sidelines of the COP-28, Kakar held a meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and exchanged views on international and regional issues, including the situation in Afghanistan and the evolving humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Kakar underscored that Pakistan and the Netherlands should work together bilaterally and through the European Union on matters of mutual interest.

He invited Dutch companies to invest in agriculture, horticulture, water management and renewable energy sectors in Pakistan.