Climate distress fuels economic crisis in Pakistan

Islamabad: The combined risks of extreme climate-related events, environmental degradation, and air pollution can reduce Pakistan's GDP by at least 18 to 20 per cent in the next decade.

According to government officials who are evaluating the negative impacts of climate change on the national economy, the financial architecture of the 20th century is not able to respond to the growing vulnerability of developing countries like Pakistan as they face multiple shocks simultaneously.

“Various sectors including housing; agriculture and livestock; and transport and communications suffered the most significant damage in recent floods worth 5.6 billion dollars, 3.7 billion dollars, and 3.3 billion dollars respectively,” the official data showed.

An official said “Pakistan faced more than 150 extreme weather events between 1998 and 2018. In 2022 catastrophic floods hit the country.

The main causes were increased precipitation and glaciers melting fuelled by climate change. One-third of the country was under water.”