UN urges immediate collective climate action in Afghanistan

KABUL (Khaama Press): As the 2022 UN Climate Change Conference aka COP27 opens on Sunday, in Egypt, the UN in Afghanistan urges immediate global cooperation to stop the detrimental impacts of the changing climate in Afghanistan, which is ranked as the 6th most vulnerable in the world to climate-related threats.
Afghanistan is on the precipice of climate projections, “the least prepared” country for climate shocks, and is prone to frequent natural catastrophes, according to a statement released by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Sunday.
According to the statement, the people of Afghanistan are extremely vulnerable to climate change because of their dependence on agriculture for subsistence, the delicate ecosystem in Afghanistan, severe environmental degradation, inadequate socioeconomic growth, and the lingering aftermath of more than 40 years of conflict.
“It is devastating to see the most vulnerable Afghans bear the brunt of environmental disasters, and it is increasingly difficult to build long-term resilience and adaptation,” said Dr. Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Humanitarian Coordinator.
The political and governance issues, as well as the lack of financial resources, make it difficult to establish environmental resilience and adaptive capacity in Afghanistan. “In a world of wars, crises and fragmentation – and in the wake of conflict in Afghanistan, all must come together to find concrete solutions to the climate emergency,” Alakbarov said.
This comes as António Guterres, the secretary-general of the UN, has called COP27 to establish the groundwork for quicker, more vigorous climate action in the upcoming “crucial decade” for the “global climate fight.”
The COP27 is held from November 6 to November 18 in Egypt while COP26 was held in Glasgow, Scotland last year.