Pakistan is highly dependent on the agriculture sector and climate change will significantly affect this sector; however, Pak-China cooperation could help Pakistan counter the climate change impact on the agriculture sector, according to a report revealed during KTrade Climate Change Seminar which was held offline and online in Karachi. According to a report published by Gwadar Pro on Tuesday, climate change seminar was conducted just ahead of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, commonly referred to as COP27, which takes place from 6 to 18 November this year. Agriculture Sector is the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, which contributes 23% of the total GDP and provides employment to around 37.4% of the labor force.

However, now Pakistan’s crops are highly sensitive to changes in temperature and water availability. Right now, the Climate in Pakistan has started negatively impacting the country’s economy as well as the overall society. The seminar focused on the challenges that require structural changes in the economy and industry and shed light on the current and future situation of climate change, making both local and foreign investors understand the challenges and the changes required. According to the report discussed during the seminar, the developed countries should shoulder more. As per the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the developed world should bear a greater financial responsibility in tackling climate change and bear more financial obligations.

There should be a fair and reasonable reduction in emissions, climate finance mechanisms, increased technical and financial support and urged for a stabilized global supply chain of new energy. “solar is the most important source of renewable energy as of today--China is a leading investor in solar energy,” reads an excerpt of the report. “When we talk about BRI, actually we talk about green corridor,” said a speaker while referring to the report, adding that the green corridor should focus on three things: agriculture & environment, food security and green development. “Pakistan should also seek to become part of that and utilize the knowledge,” according to the report. It added that Pakistan should focus on how to become part of China’s green corridor.

The report covers in detail what China has done in its clean energy focus. Ahmed Shayan, Sustainable Lead of Engro Corp said that like China, his corporation was involved in different joint ventures to address the challenges of plastic waste.  They are moving from informal waste-based management policies across the country to sophisticated management systems to safeguard the ecosystem. Besides methodological research and connecting strong governments from the strong municipal bond programs and bringing them together on a platform where everybody has a stake in plastics and waste management can come together and then we can use that knowledge gap.

Nasir Ali Shah, Chairman of KASB Group and CEO of Sindhi Forest, urged for the latest technology, saying that Pakistan as a country contributes less than 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions while the country is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. “We cannot take ownership of that and not treat it as an emergency because we are disproportionately affected by it. The real argument is balancing economic growth with climate resilience and adaptation to climate change,” Mr. Shah said. Ahmed Shayan, Sustainable Lead of Engro Corp shared his company’s move from informal waste-based management policies across the country to sophisticated management systems to safeguard ecosystems.

Mustafa Hyder Syed said the US emits 56 times more than Pakistan from 1971 to 2020 in the energy sector, stating that the US alone takes up 20% of the world's cumulative emissions. “Countries in the world need to take the onus of responsibility, reduce the emissions, and give the opportunity of industrialization to the Global South and decrease their carbon emissions,” Mr. Sayed added.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP