South Asia is the most vulnerable region in the face of climate change: Experts

Islamabad

South Asia is the most vulnerable region in the face of climate change and thus, collective efforts are needed of the hour to deal with different threats posed by changing weather patterns and increasing risks of natural calamities. 

The climate change experts said this while sharing their views at a hybrid seminar in Islamabad. Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability: IPCC Working-II Report 2022 lessons and way forward for South Asia” organized by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), said a media release on Wednesday.  

Senior Economist and Food Systems Specialist, Livelihoods, ICIMOD, Nepal, Dr Abid Hussain, asserted that almost all the findings of the report are very relevant to the South Asia region.

He was of the view that environmental sustainability was a cross cutting theme for all types of sustainability. Referring to the IPCC report, he said that 54 percent of Pakistan consisted of mountainous areas. Hence, inclusion of the mountain’s ecosystem in the report is of high importance for Pakistan. Besides, gender centric issues are of specific mention in the report, he added.  

Climate Scientist Dr Fahad Saeed highlighted that the IPCC report enforces the risk for South Asia as one of the hotspots.  The report shows that water has been the most stressed resource which climate change has ensued.

Changes in climate have already impacted the lives of the people already living on higher mountains, and mangroves in the coastal areas are also being depleted.

Besides, Climate Change has triggered heat waves in urban areas and has been impacting food viability, and increasing the incidence of diseases, such as dengue and malaria.  

SDPI Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri emphasized that the governments and scientists needed to dwell on the magnitude of the problem presented by the IPCC report.

South Asia is for the first time declared as the most vulnerable to climate change and with impacts so glaring on all aspects of life as this report has signified, he added.  

Climate Action Network South Asia Director Sanjay Vashisht viewed that according to the IPCC report, climate change had already done substantial damage. Now is the era of adaptation and loss and damage control, where 50-75 percent of the global population could be exposed to periods of life-threatening climatic conditions.

He highlighted that the IPCC report says that by 2030 the number of people living below the poverty line will increase multifold due to climate change.  

Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change, Pakistan Chief Executive Aisha Khan suggested that we need to create a synergy among the mitigation and adaptation plans and work as a partner in face of climate change.  

WWF, Pakistan Director Dr Imran Khalid suggested that the cross-cutting themes for the region like the air pollution and water should be dealt with on priority. 

SDPI Research Fellow Dr Hina Aslam informed the participants that energy transition lies at the center of the climate change adaptation. Hydropower generation and cooling water demands have decreased, which critically analyses the impacts of climate change on the energy. 

SDPI Associate Research Fellow Kashif Majeed Salik earlier highlighted different aspects of IPCC report,