15 Times More Likely to Die From Climate Impacts: Pakistan’s Battle With Climate Change
Activists and experts weigh in on the devastating 2022 floods that left a third of the country underwater.
With the country being located in a climate hotspot, climate disasters are becoming an ever-too-common event in Pakistan.
Despite contributing less than 1 percent of global carbon emissions per year, Pakistan ranks among the top ten countries in the world most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Floods–the worst in the country’s history–ravished the country last year, causing over 15 billion dollars worth of damage, 30 billion dollars in losses and killing 1,792 people. The floods also destroyed two million homes and displaced over eight million people. Flood water lingered for weeks causing water-borne diseases, such as dengue fever, to rampantly spread. The Sindh province in Pakistan experienced a rainfall increase of 726 percent above its usual amount, while the Balochistan province received 590 percent more rainfall than usual.
“If you want to look at a textbook definition of climate change, you can look at Pakistan in the first six months of 2022”, said Ameer Abdullah Khan, a lecturer at the National Defence University in Pakistan.
The beginning of 2022 started with a cold wave for Pakistan, during which an extreme snowstorm in the province of Punjab killed 23 people. This preceded a short spring season, which was then followed by an extreme heat wave from March through April. This heat wave was so severe that it caused schools to shut down early. The heatwave kicked off a record-breaking monsoon season with torrential rains and floods due to warmer air holding more moisture.
But Khan noted that these conditions were not equal in their impact.
“It’s a global phenomenon. Climate does not affect everyone equally,” he said.
Farmers were among those who faced heavy financial impacts from the floods. Over one million livestock were killed and two million acres of agricultural land were underwater. The destruction of 6.5 million acres of crops resulted in a brutal harvest season. The farmers, who were already steeped in debt from purchasing seeds and fertilizer, fell deeper into debt because of damage costs. The agriculture sector of Pakistan employs nearly half of the country’s workforce.
“People who are outside, either pushing a cart or manual laborers like [farmers] would be highly affected by it [climate change] compared to anyone who’s inside,” said Climate Advocate Durlabh Ashok when asked about the disparities of climate impact.
People from rural areas that come into the cities to find work are also more susceptible to climate disasters, especially floods, Ashok noted. Because they are often sending money back to their families, they live in cheaper, poorly built accommodations in order to save money. These accommodations cannot stand up to the floods, and many have been already rebuilt due to previous floods.
“It’s about thinking long term, rather than just making sure you’re patching things up quickly, or before the money runs out,” Ashok said.
Ashok said that the main problem with climate action in Pakistan is that the government focuses on short-term solutions instead of long-term ones, so they can retain support until the next election. This only works until another climate disaster occurs, and causes even more damage because the proper infrastructure is not being built. Ashok said that it is important for the government to focus on implementing sustainable changes that will be effective in the long run. This includes establishing early warning systems to prevent potential issues.
“To prevent such tragedies in the future, we recognize the need for improved early warning systems in mountainous areas, as the existing systems are not sufficient to respond effectively to floods,” said Dr. Sher Muhammad, a cryosphere expert at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development in Nepal.
Muhammad explained that early warning systems can provide vital assistance to organizations such as the Red Cross and other similar institutions. They enable these groups to prepare and mobilize resources in advance to help those in need. Early warning systems also allow people to evacuate quickly and safely before climate disasters even happen. Additionally, these systems allow for faster assistance from other countries.
“There is a responsibility, I would say political responsibility as well as moral responsibility that [the] global north needs to fulfill”, says lecturer Ameer Abdullah Khan. “But [politicians] have been dodging in this context.”
Although having produced 92 percent of the CO2 in the atmosphere, Khan claimed that countries in the global north have failed to provide substantial aid to developing countries, which are by far the most affected by climate change. An example of this failure is COP15, promises outlined at the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference. At this conference, developed countries pledged 100 billion dollars, which would be given annually to developing countries to help them fight climate change.
“100 billion dollars is nothing,” said Khan. “It’s a very small amount compared to the losses that the global south has been facing because of climate change. But if we even look into that 100 billion dollar promise, it has not been fulfilled for even a single year.”
Khan added that hidden conditions with pledges can pose major problems as well. These pledges, Khan explained, are in the form of loans that often have to be paid back with interest. There are also often requirements that the countries receiving the money have to use certain technology to complete the projects regarding climate adaptation and mitigation, according to Khan. The affected countries then end up having to buy this technology from the countries giving the pledges, with the pledge money, Khan claimed.
Pakistan has faced over 170 extreme climate events in the past 21 years.