Islamabad:Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change, Romina Khurshid Alam said that rapid glacial melting and resultant floods in Hindukhush Karakokram Himalaya (HKH) region has put lives and livelihoods of nearly two billion people at risk and, pose serious threats to the socio-economic sustainability of the regional countries.
However, tackling effectively these climate change-caused common environmental, social and economic risks through resilience building measures is possible only through close and innovative collaboration among the regional countries in developing, adopting and sharing workable solutions, Ms Alam said while addressing the inaugural session of the ‘Policy Action Dialogue on Tackling Climate Change Impacts’ here on Wednesday.
The event was organised the international development and civil society organisations organization in collaboration with federal organisations working on climate change, food security and water conservation.
While addressing participating policymakers, researchers, educationists, development sector experts, environmentalists, students and media at the event, Romina Khurshid Alam remarked that while the global temperatures continued to rise untamed, climate change was having severe and far-reaching consequences in the Hindu Kush Karakoram Himalaya (HKH) region, which spans across Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, China, Nepal, and Bhutan, where consequently glaciers, river water flows, energy supplies and agriculture were being adversely affected, placing the livelihoods of over 240 million people in the mountainous areas, and around 1.65 billion people downstream, at increasing risk.
There is a pressing need for the HKH regional countries to work together to manage shared water resources and address regional climate challenges by fostering cross-border cooperation on climate change mitigation and adaptation, as rivers and glaciers in the HKH region transcend national boundaries, PM’s climate aide emphasised.
Addressing the participants, Dr. Pema Gyamtsho, Director General of Kathmandu-based ICIMOD organisation, emphasised in his welcome remarks the vital importance of addressing the complex environmental challenges of the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region. He said, "Pakistan, with 7,253 glaciers—the highest number outside the polar regions —is vulnerable to both floods and droughts. We must improve access to climate data for at-risk communities," he stated, highlighting that although technologies exist, scaling them effectively remains a challenge.
The disaster risk reduction should focus beyond preparedness and prevention, urging investment in planning and implementation, Dr. Pema Gyamtsho suggested. Lt. Gen. Inam Haider Malik, Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), also spoke at the event, emphasizing the alarming impact of warming on the glacial regions in the country. He revealed that glacial melt in the Indus River basin was accelerating at a dangerous rate.
He cited a 23.3% decrease in snow cover between November 2023 and April 2024 and an annual glacial melt rate of 3%, with an additional 16% mass loss over the past five years. The NDMA chairman warned that while melting may provide temporary water surpluses, the long-term implications are dire and require urgent attention. He urged on the need for a regional approach to address the cryospheric crisis.
Special remarks delivered by Ms. Aisha Humera Chaudhry, Acting Secretary of MoCC&EC emphasized on the need for making the cryosphere an integral part of the climate discourse in Pakistan. Ahmed Kamal, Chairman of the Federal Flood Commission and Neelofur Hafeez, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MoNFS&R) highlighted the importance of interagency cooperation to tackle the multifaceted challenges of climate change.