ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have agreed to collaborate on enhancing Pakistan's climate resilience.

This agreement was forged during high-level Climate Adaptation Roundtable hosted by Romina Khurshid Alam, Prime Minister's Coordinator for Climate Change, as per news release.

Roundtable convened at National Disaster Management Authority Headquarters and was co-hosted by Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, Chairperson of NDMA.  During event, Romina briefed Bill Gates on diverse impacts of climate change across sectors in Pakistan, highlighting how country's socio-economic gains are increasingly vulnerable to climate-related challenges.

She highlighted frequent and intense occurrences of floods, heat waves, forest fires and droughts, stressing their significant impacts on sectors such as agriculture, water, energy, health and education.  Despite Pakistan's minimal contribution to global carbon emissions, she noted, country bears severe consequences of global warming and is fully committed to mitigating these effects to safeguard vulnerable communities' lives and livelihoods.

She underscored Pakistan's dedication to supporting global climate action and emphasised importance of ongoing dialogues between national stakeholders and international partners to foster collaboration on climate change issues.  She pointed out active roles played by both public and private sectors in climate mitigation and adaptation, underscoring need for enhanced linkages with international counterparts.

Gates commended policies of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government in bolstering Pakistan's climate resilience and its efforts in mitigation and adaptation despite limited financial resources.

He assured Romina of Foundation's commitment to offer technical and non-technical support to launch initiatives focusing on climate change mitigation and adaptation in agriculture, water, energy, food security, health and education sectors.

During roundtable discussions, Gates also met with key private sector leaders in health, agriculture, technology and climate finance.  Gates stressed importance of leveraging science-based solutions and potential of artificial intelligence to address climate-related challenges at scale.

He acknowledged unique challenges Pakistan faces in dealing with climate risks and reiterated his Foundation's strong commitment to supporting climate adaptation efforts in country.

Published in The Daily National Courier, June, 26 2024

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