Pakistan’s Growing Climate Crisis: Resilience St...

Summary

• Rather, Pakistan must shift from reactive relief to anticipatory action and disaster risk reduction (DRR).
• Mountain communities require GLOF-resilient infrastructure and early warning systems; urban centres need effective drainage and improved town planning; rural floodplains require riverine flood preparedness and climate-resilient agriculture; earthquake-prone areas need safer buildings; and coastal communities require measures to address erosion, seawater intrusion, and sea-level rise.
• Disaster risk reduction is not solely the responsibility of governments or international organizations; it requires cooperation among public institutions, civil society, local communities, and individuals.

AI Generated Summary

By Engr. Abdur Rehman Khichi

October 13 is observed every year as International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction. This year, civil society organizations, international agencies, and government authorities in Pakistan marked the day under the theme “Resilience Starts at Home.” The message is particularly important for Pakistan, which remains among the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries. Severe floods have repeatedly struck its plains and settlements, with major disasters occurring every few years. In the last five years, the devastating floods of 2022 and 2025 have once again exposed the country’s vulnerability. Almost every year, Pakistan faces climate-related catastrophes of a scale that is becoming increasingly difficult to manage.

Reports warn that Pakistan is facing a near-continuous cycle of climate-induced disruptions rather than isolated, once-in-a-decade catastrophes. Previously, governments and communities had some time between disasters to rehabilitate affected populations and rebuild damaged infrastructure. That window is shrinking. Before recovery from one catastrophe is completed, another disaster arrives. Unprecedented rainfall in river catchment areas devastates agricultural land, destroys homes, displaces communities, and disrupts the normal course of life. The economic and humanitarian consequences are enormous, and the losses borne by ordinary people and the country are becoming increasingly difficult to absorb.

A study found that human-induced climate change has increased the intensity of Pakistan’s monsoon rainfall. Scientists have warned that global warming is making extreme rainfall events more dangerous. Meanwhile, temperatures frequently approaching or exceeding 50°C in parts of Pakistan accelerate glacier melt. Pakistan has more than 7,000 glaciers, making it one of the world’s most important glacier-bearing countries outside the polar regions. As these glaciers melt, the risk of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and flash floods increases, sometimes even before the monsoon season begins. Communities in the Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush mountain ranges face growing threats to their lives, homes, agriculture, and infrastructure. Recent GLOF-related events in Nepal (wider Himalayan region) have further raised questions about the safety of people living in these fragile mountain environments.