ISLAMABAD: Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman along with nine other influencers from around the world has been listed in the group of persons to watch during the upcoming Conference of Parties session to be held in Egypt.

According to Climate Home News, a platform that produces content mostly focused on the global climate crisis, Ms Rehman and Egypt’s Mahmoud Mohieldin are among those shaping the current global climate agenda.

Climate Home News reported that the catastrophic flooding that submerged Pakistan and the scant international response to the disaster had sharpened developing countries’ call for finance to help them recover from climate-induced damages. Pakistan would be at the front of the pack in demanding support.

“Sherry Rehman, the country’s climate minister, did media rounds to explain the scale of the reconstruction challenge. As the nation chaired a group of 134 developing countries, known as the G77, she would play a key role in driving a push for a new funding stream to respond to climate damages,” as per the news report.

Her experience as a former chair of Pakistan Red Crescent and former ambassador to the United States would come in handy, it added.

“Rich nations owe reparations to countries facing climate disaster. There are resources for developed nations to wage wars but none are there for saving human lives as their response is slow in the case of Pakistan and other natural calamity-struck nations.

“The federal government will also launch the rehabilitation plan in 4-5 days that will cover key aspects of revival efforts to ensure sustainable relocation of the affected communities,” Ms Rehman said, adding that around 90 districts remained calamity-hit and it was revealed after joint surveys.

As per Climate Home News, these nine global figures would form the agenda of the 27th Conference of Parties (COP27) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to be held in Egypt and would be the centre of attention in the climate summit.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2022