Islamabad: The Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change (CSCCC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination (MoCC and EC) and with support from UNDP Pakistan, organized a comprehensive day-long event titled “Pre-COP29 Dialogue: National and Subnational Perspectives.” This gathering is part of preparations for the upcoming COP29 conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, and aimed to address the challenges and intricacies of enhancing ambition and enabling action, particularly in the realm of climate finance.
According to United Nations Development Programme, the event convened various stakeholders, including representatives from national and subnational governments, international organizations, multilateral development banks, and civil society, to discuss climate priorities. In her keynote speech, Ms. Romina Khurshid Alam, the Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, emphasized Pakistan’s demand for a reformed Global Financial Architecture to support vulnerable nations. The dialogue explored the financial needs of developing countries, estimated between $400 billion to $1 trillion, highlighting the necessity for financial flows from the Global North to the Global South.
The event also featured additional insights from Ms. Aisha Humera Chaudhry, Additional Secretary (In-charge) of MoCC and EC, who detailed Pakistan’s strategies related to Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) 3.0 and the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG). She outlined the commitment to align national ambitions with international objectives and mentioned over 30 planned events by Pakistan at COP29. Senator Ms. Sherry Rehman, former Minister for Climate Change, stressed the importance of a focused agenda for COP29 and urged for alliances with partners such as G77+China to hold developed countries accountable.
The dialogue included three panel discussions to further explore Pakistan’s climate strategies. UNDP Pakistan’s Resident Representative, Dr. Samuel Rizk, commended the country’s initial NDC commitments while pointing out the global financing challenges. Dr. Ishrat Hussain, former Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, addressed the dual needs of climate action and economic development, emphasizing climate finance’s role in poverty reduction and sustainable growth.
A policy brief summarizing the key recommendations from the dialogue will be released to guide Pakistan’s climate action strategies in preparation for COP29.