PM Imran Khan is all set to co-chair and give a keynote speech at the UN’s Summit for Biodiversity 2020 which aims to restore the balance between development and nature. Considering that as a developing country, we stand to experience the worst effects of and incur major losses because of rapid climate change.
There was a pertinent need for Pakistan to take initiative, acknowledge the gravity of the situation and contribute towards leaps made by the international community in this regard. This is also why the PM made climate change a key component of his speech at the UNGA last month. Thus, for the PM to be at the forefront of the drafting process of environmental policies is not surprising. Pakistan is one of the biggest stakeholders in this fight, and our perspective must be taken into account.
In cooperation with countries across the world, a 10-point pledge was drafted, in accordance to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), for the basis of the summit which highlighted ways through which certain ecosystems could be preserved in a world where human progress threatens complete extinction. Ultimately, this body convenes not only for the purpose of preservation but also for the aim to prevent a worsening environment from having irrevocable effects on health, wellbeing and the quality of life of the average individual across the world.
Pakistan has had to undergo a series of debates in order to pass sustainable policies and introduce projects like Tiger Force Day, Billion Tree Tsunami and the like, in light of the injurious ways through which climate change was manifesting in Pakistan—thick smog, excessive land pollution, water pollution, rapid deforestation and the engenderment of animal species, to name a few. To neglect the disproportionality created in our country would be a crime as it would make ways of life much more toxic for future generations.
The summit looks to provide promising solutions that encourage uniform and united action by all participants in their effort to delay, if not stop, the rate at which the atmospheric conditions continue to change—factors that the PM is very much aware of, and can provide guidance in, in conjunction with the government.
Source: https://nation.com.pk/06-Oct-2020/environmental-pledge