'Pakistan's geolocation heightens climate risks'

Experts stress need for integrating scientific insights into decision-making

ISLAMABAD:

"The narrative of climate change reveals deep-seated inequality," remarked Institute of Regional Studies President Ambassador Jauhar Saleem during a webinar on 'Navigating Frameworks of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) through the State of Climate Change in Asia'.

Drawing from his experience representing Pakistan at forums like the UNFCCC, he noted the stark disparity in climate change effects between developing and developed nations. He emphasised the slow progress seen in past Conferences of Parties (COPs) and called for enhanced collaboration to address humanity's greatest existential threat.

Dr Liudmila Kolomeets, an expert from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Russia, emphasised key findings from WMO's 'State of the Climate in Asia 2023' report in her keynote address. She highlighted concerning trends, including 2023's mean temperature being the second highest recorded in Asia.

Additionally, she noted anomalies in precipitation and snow coverage and the ongoing increase in glacial loss in the South Asian region. Dr Fahad Saeed, a South Asian Regional Climate Scientist from Climate Analytics, highlighted Pakistan's pivotal geolocation as a convergence point for summer monsoons and winter western disturbances.

'This positioning makes the country especially susceptible to climate variations, evident in events such as the 2022 floods, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and heatwaves,' he said adding that, there was a great need of integrating scientific insights into decision-making at national, subnational, and local levels.

IRS Climate Change Researcher Talha Tufail Bhatti noted that this year's COP financial targets had disappointed developing nations. He said that with at least 10 countries experiencing extreme temperatures over 50°C and economic losses reaching $202.7 billion in 2023, the pledges were insufficient. "There is a need for swift and ambitious action from the international community," he added.