ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is the seventh most vulnerable country to climate change which poses a serious challenge to the well-being of the people or to even national security.

This was stated by the Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, while addressing as chief guest at the inaugural session “Reducing the Risk of Water Disasters” on Tuesday. The minister said that the traditional seeds and cropping pattern would become irrelevant in future which means that there can be serious implications for food security.

Thus, the challenge for the country is not only to develop and make the infrastructure resilient and adaptable.

He said that the challenge is also to have smart agriculture or new agriculture revolution that would provide the country with new seeds that are weather resistant and can withstand climate change because traditional seeds and cropping patterns would become irrelevant.

The minister said that The Netherlands helping Pakistan to face the challenge in the water sector. He said that in 2010 and in 2013 Pakistan faced flooding, when his government came to office, it immediately started which was done with the help of consultant from The Netherlands and this report studied Pakistan’s water resources and the potential from where flooding can take place and recommended infrastructure in order to mitigate against possible future flooding.

He said that the National Flood Protection Programme would help the government minimize the risk of flooding.

Ahsan Iqbal said that to fight this menace and to protect the people from climate disasters the government would forge an international partnership with developed countries so that the country could benefit from research and technology in this regard.

Iqbal said that the country appreciates the support from countries such as The Netherlands which are sharing their experience and knowledge to help Pakistan. He expressed the hope that from this workshop some practical ideas will come.

He expressed the hope that the report would provide a roadmap to the framework the government would develop how to have resilient recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction in the country.

He said that this framework is a roadmap for Pakistan to have an adaptable infrastructure and to develop the capacity to mitigate against future climate disasters. He said that this is a national challenge and all have to work to build a coalition to achieve the goals set in the framework.

He said that this report was finally approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) in 2017 with the decision to implement in 10 years with a total cost of Rs340 billion with an equal contribution by the federal and provincial governments. However, he said that with the new government at the helm of affairs, the framework and strategy was put on the back burner.

The minister said that last year’s flooding added a new dimension to flooding in Pakistan and the government has invited international experts (The Netherlands) and the recommendations to update the previous study.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023