PM urges international community to deliver commitments made at COP27  

The international community was urged by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday to fulfill the promises made at COP 27 in Sharm al-Sheikh and to operationalize the Loss and Damage Fund in accordance with the equity principle.

The provision of grants that don’t increase the indebtedness of developing countries, as well as enabling climate-vulnerable countries to access the Fund on the basis of a climate vulnerability index, are just a few of the commitments the international community made at COP 27 in Sharm al-Sheikh, according to him. He claimed that as part of his interactions at the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, he brought the exogenous shocks that led to the poly-crisis for developing nations like Pakistan to the attention of world leaders.

These shocks, he said resulted in stalling growth, supply chain disruptions caused commodity prices to soar, leading to back-breaking inflation and then extreme weather events precipitated unprecedented floods that cost Pakistan $30 billion in losses.   “The inability to bridge the financing gaps to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) coupled with the cost of realizing climate goals is inflicting a heavy cost on the world, running into trillions of dollars annually,” he added.  The prime minister said the world should use present economic and climate turbulence as an opportunity for course correction. The starting point could be rethinking the global financial architecture where IFIs design their programs to be pro-growth and aligned with SDGs and climate justice goals.  “The world faces a moment of truth. Let us all vow to rise to the challenge hand in hand in a spirit of solidarity and compassion,” he added.