ISLAMABAD: Speakers on Wednesday said climate change was threatening Pakistan’s national, socio-economic and macro-economic stability with the country ranking 14th for economic and 25th for economic losses per unit GDP globally.

They were speaking at an event titled, ‘Climate Change and Impacts on National Security of Pakistan’, jointly organised by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) and the defence ministry.

The speakers said with contesting priorities amidst worsening climate crisis, it was increasingly challenging to address food security which had transcended into a human security challenge.

SDPI Board of Governors Chairperson Ambassador Shafqat Kakakhel said the Indus Water Treaty had delivered well on the agenda of water security and avoided water-driven conflicts between India and Pakistan. While India had constructed several power projects on Indus, Jhelum and Chenab, the permitted water capacity had not been availed yet, he said.

Institute of Regional Studies President Ambassador Nadeem Riyaz said without political will and diplomacy there was no permanent and effective solution to the crisis.

Executive Director, Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change (CSCCC), Aisha Khan called for adoption of three focal lenses for national security aligning food, water and population considerations, shift to regenerative agriculture and implement research backed agriculture practices.

University of Agriculture Faisalabad Vice Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmed Khan stressed the need for shifting from flooded irrigation to vertical hydroponic agriculture farm mechanisation.

Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research and Development CEO Shakeel Ramay called for human diplomacy in the light of limited scope and efficiency of military solutions in contemporary times.

He said political will and wisdom were critical for cooperative co-existence in the region.

Health Services Academy (HSA) Vice-Chancellor Dr Shahzad Khan said climate, water and food challenges were inadvertently impacting public health therefore any climate policy must include health considerations.

Director Governance, World Wildlife Fund Pakistan, Dr Imran Khalid said climate change was a development and governance failure, thus weak urban planning and governance failures added to suffering of people.

Inadequate water supply infrastructure combined with dismally low wastewater treatment capacity contributes to groundwater and drinking water contamination, he added.

Specialist Green Growth and Climate Change, PPAF, Hamid Afridi emphasised on adopting “human-centric approach to national security” and called for collaboration with local organisations for technology transfer, capacity building of public authorities and local communities.

Fawad Hayat, Head of Climate Change, National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), said recurring climate disasters were exacerbating economic, infrastructure and life losses which called for climate resilient infrastructure, retrofitting buildings and nature-based solutions and rainwater harvesting.

Zafar Iqbal, Superintending Engineer of Federal Floods Commission, said apart from flood protection beds, water storage projects and urban flood preventions were being planned, stressing on strengthening flood prevention infrastructure as first line of defence and scaling up investment in flood prevention and resilience, which at present remained at Rs26 billion.

Head of International Relations Department, National Defence University, Dr Shaheen Akhtar said trans-boundary water management challenges should be resolved through human diplomacy but at present, internal water management, intra-provincial coordination and water storage should be focused.

Published in Dawn, March 7th, 2024