Climate crisis: more than 9 million people heading towards poverty in Pakistan: but it is the country responsible for less than 1% of global greenhouse gases

ISLAMABAD (Asianews) – Between six and nine million Pakistanis will be dragged into poverty due to the catastrophic monsoon floods, which occurred between late August and early September, linked to climate change. This is stated by the World Bank. Pakistan was hit by unprecedented monsoon rains this 2022, which killed 1,700 people, devastated two million homes and put a third of the nation under water. Eight million people remain displaced, living in crumbling tent cities and scattered camps near stagnant lakes that have swallowed up their goods and livelihoods. A report of the World Bank states that Pakistan’s poverty rate is expected to increase between 2.5 and 4 percentage points as a direct result of the floods. The loss of jobs, livestock, crops, homes and school closures – as well as the spread of disease and rising food costs – threaten to put between 5.8 and 9 million in poverty, he said.

Pakistan is responsible for less than 1% of global greenhouse gases. Reversal of these negative socio-economic effects is likely to take a long time, the report points out World Bank. In the nation of 220 million, about 20% already live below the poverty line, according to data from theAsian Development Bank. ST Asian Insider. Before the flood began, Pakistan’s coffers were already in dire shape, with a cost-of-living crisis, a thrilling rupee and dwindling foreign exchange reserves. There World Bank said inflation in the country is expected to stand at 23% for the financial year 2023. Pakistan is responsible for less than one percent of global greenhouse gases, but ranks very high in the rankings of nations vulnerable to weather conditions extremes caused by climate change.

There is an urgent need for “climate justice” to prevail. The UN climate science panel says adverse weather events are becoming more frequent and more severe due to man-made emissions. Islamabad has called on richer, more industrialized nations with a larger carbon footprint to contribute to the aid effort as a form of climate justice. “We don’t have room to give our economy a stimulus package, which would create jobs and provide people with the sustainable incomes they need,” Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman said Tuesday. “We are still in a long and relentless struggle to save lives.”