Time to act now for global climate action rising to this moment

By Zafar Iqbal:

Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change, Romina Khurshid Alam, on Monday underscored the critical need for a coordinated global response to safeguard rapidly deteriorating ecosystems, as well as the lives, livelihoods, and infrastructure of vulnerable communities.

“Time is running out to address the planet’s most pressing challenge this century—one that threatens the sustainability of Earth, human life, and ecosystems. Inaction on climate change is simply not an option,” Romina Khurshid stated while speaking to the media after the plenary session of the two-week UN-led global climate conference (COP29) that began on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Romina Khurshid Alam is heading Pakistan’s delegation at the climate conference, with a focus on demonstrating Pakistan’s dedication to global climate action and its efforts to build resilience despite limited financial resources.Pakistan Hosts 45th Annual Forum for Global Justice and Rule of Law

The 29th annual United Nations climate summit has commenced, with representatives from almost 200 countries preparing for challenging discussions on finance and trade. These discussions follow a year marked by devastating weather disasters that have intensified developing countries’ demands for increased financial support to cope with the escalating impacts of climate change.

At this UN climate gathering, world leaders have come together with the goal of addressing rising global temperatures, which have exacerbated extreme events such as the recent floods in Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Spain.

A primary objective at this year’s global climate summit is to reach an agreement on how to secure more funding for poorer nations to help them reduce greenhouse gas emissions and cope with the worsening consequences of climate change.

In her conversation with journalists, Romina Khurshid Alam urged world leaders to fulfill their commitments to provide climate finance to developing countries. “Here in Baku, we must reach a consensus on a new global climate finance target to prevent further devastation from climate change,” she emphasized.

She also called for a more “ambitious” new goal for climate funding for the world’s poorer nations, stressing that leaders of wealthier nations, who have historically been the primary contributors to carbon emissions, should understand that climate finance is not a charitable request, but a necessity for developing countries to meet their climate adaptation and disaster resilience needs.

“We must recognize that COP29 is a pivotal moment for charting a new direction for all of us,” Romina Khurshid Alam asserted.

In her remarks to the media, Ms. Alam mentioned that a series of bilateral and multilateral meetings and events have been planned to engage global partners in investing in Pakistan’s mitigation, adaptation, and resilience-building efforts, such as clean energy, sustainable agriculture, and water conservation.