Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Senator Sherry Rehman has noted that global records are being broken by climate change, while actions taken to match pledges fall short. According to the Pakistani Chief Strategist against Climate Change, humanity is in a race against time, and gatherings like COP28 are crucial in dispelling the growing climate cynicism that has taken hold across the world, particularly among the youth. Sherry was of the view that it is imperative that we move beyond talk and take action, especially in the case of countries and big businesses that failed to align with global carbon budgets and Paris Agreement goals. At the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, Sherry told the gathering that Pakistan is fully aligned with the commitments of the Paris Agreement, and we look forward to a real change in the glacial pace of climate finance, adaptation, and mitigation in our collective efforts. Developing countries like Pakistan are actually facing climate catastrophe but face significant obstacles in securing the necessary funding to meet their climate goals.
Climate change is posing an existential threat to mankind to gather with all living organisms including animals, sea life, and other creators in the universe, while no nation is secure from the disastrous impact of global warming, and the risk deepens every passing day. The international community is aware of the challenge which confronts the survival of the earth and nations across the world had set a comprehensive plan of action under the Paris Accord dated back in 2015. A worldwide UN-led campaign is currently underway to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate the worst effects of global warming in the world. However, there is a lack of seriousness and sustentation of commitments on the part of certain nations, particularly the developed nations that are shedding their responsibility and reluctant to uphold their pledges in respect of investment of resources in climate change projects in Asia and Africa. The Western nations are in a delusion that global warming is a problem of developing countries and has the least impact on them. This serious misperception of the developed states has seriously undermined the global efforts to combat climate change and the international community could not achieve its landmark climate change goals so far.
As of today, the developed countries received 52% of the climate finance in 2022, while developing nations only received 48 percent of the available funds even though developing countries present nearly 80% population of the world. It is alarming that developing countries including Pakistan are highly vulnerable to climate change but have limited access to international climate finance. According to statistics, Pakistan needs $ 348 billion in funds between 2022 to 2030, which is 10.7% of its cumulative GDP to meet its climate needs. At the same time, the overall tally of global climate financing illustrates that 78 developing nations require a staggering amount of $ 6 trillion until 2030 to accomplish their financial needs under the Paris Accord.
Historically, the in-action and bigotry of the developed nations are rapidly multiplying the fatality of the impending disaster, while there are still multiple queries about the decisions adopted by the COP-27 and recently created Loss and Damage (F&D) Fund that aimed at providing crucial financial assistance to the victim nations of the Climate-induced disasters including floods, earthquake, droughts, and deforestation, etc. The global community is still far to comprehend its proclamations made during the past summits, while global leaders are again scheduled to weigh the pros and cons of global climate change policy during the COP-28 in UAE. Whilst, the mountainous cost of inaction is projected to reach $ 23 trillion by 2050 if the conditions persist in the coming years.
Indeed, global warming is a common hazard to the universe and it equally hurts all nations irrespective of their geographical locations, environmental conditions, and economic and technological growth. The incapacities of the poor and the inaction of the well-off counties have the same disastrous effects on all communities around the globe. The climate change agenda is a collective responsibility of the global community that merits urgent actions by all stakeholders to tackle the worst effects of heat and ensure the safe survival of all nations. It is high time that the global community must take action to reduce the worsening impacts of global warming and work to build a resilient, sustainable, and thriving future for all human beings on Earth.
