Call to integrate climate action into planning & budgeting, manage crisis through evidence-based policymaking

Experts on Friday called for integrating climate action into development planning and budgeting, expanding innovative financing mechanisms, strengthening disaster preparedness systems, and fostering stronger public-private partnerships to help Pakistan build resilience against escalating climate risks

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 5th Jun, 2026) Experts on Friday called for integrating climate action into development planning and budgeting, expanding innovative financing mechanisms, strengthening disaster preparedness systems, and fostering stronger public-private partnerships to help Pakistan build resilience against escalating climate risks.

The demands were made during a webinar, titled: Advancing Climate Action through Partnerships and Innovation, on World Environment Day, organized by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Abid Qaiyum Suleri, Executive Director, SDPI and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), said that Pakistan's climate challenges could only be addressed through evidence-based policymaking, innovative financing, and strong institutional partnerships. He further said climate resilience must become a central pillar of the country's development agenda, having greater alignment between national policies, budgetary priorities and local-level implementation.

Dr. Suleri emphasized that climate adaptation should be viewed not only as an environmental necessity but also as an economic investment that safeguards livelihoods, infrastructure and future growth. He also called for scaling up climate finance, strengthening coordination among federal and provincial institutions, and ensuring that vulnerable communities remain at the center of climate action initiatives.

Highlighting the role of research and policy institutions, Dr Suleri said informed decision-making and multi-stakeholder collaboration would be critical to transforming Pakistan's climate vulnerabilities into opportunities for sustainable and inclusive development.

Delivering remarks as chief guest, Syed Abrar Hussein, Director General, Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA), said collaborative initiatives on plastic waste management had transformed confiscated single-use plastics into useful products such as benches, planters and waste bins for educational institutions and public spaces.

Highlighted the successful conversion of 33 traditional brick kilns in Islamabad to environmentally friendly zigzag technology that reduce emissions, he said cooperation with the steel industry had resulted in the installation of bag-filter systems that capture harmful emissions while enabling the recovery of valuable zinc from industrial waste.

Hussein stressed that climate policies must reach communities at the grassroots level, particularly farmers, through awareness campaigns, training and the promotion of climate-smart agriculture and water conservation practices.

Dr. Shafqat Munir, Deputy Executive Director (Policy) SDPI, said climate change was no longer a future threat but a present development reality affecting Pakistan’s economic stability, food security, water security, public health, livelihoods and social cohesion. “Climate change is forcing us to move beyond isolated projects and fragmented responses.

The future demands partnerships that are stronger, innovations that are bolder, and actions that are faster. If we can align science, policy, finance and community action, we can transform climate resilience from an aspiration into a development pathway for Pakistan and beyond,” he said.

Dr. Munir emphasized that Pakistan's recurring floods, droughts, heatwaves and glacial hazards required a shift from disaster response to anticipatory action and risk-informed development.

Dr. Muhammad Usman, Manager Research at the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said recent climate-induced disasters had highlighted the importance of anticipatory action, early warning systems and community preparedness.

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He said NDMA had strengthened its National Emergency Operations Centre, enhanced impact-based forecasting and expanded multi-channel dissemination of early warnings to vulnerable communities. Dr. Usman suggested integrating climate resilience standards into infrastructure development, promoting risk-informed planning and adopting a multi-hazard approach that simultaneously addresses floods, heatwaves, glacial lake outburst floods and landslides.

Sohail Maqbool Malik, Technical Team Lead at the Climate Resourcing Coordination Centre (CRCC), underscored the need to convert Pakistan's climate commitments into a pipeline of bankable and investment-ready projects. He noted that despite global commitments to increase climate finance and Pakistan's estimated requirement of hundreds of billions of dollars for climate action under its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the country continued to face significant financing gaps.

Anam Rathore, Program Lead Pakistan at the Climate Vulnerable Forum and V20 Finance Ministers (CVF-V20), stressed the need for greater international climate justice and easier access to climate finance for vulnerable countries. She emphasized that climate-vulnerable nations like Pakistan required stronger global support for adaptation, resilience-building and loss-and-damage financing mechanisms to address the disproportionate impacts of climate change.

Ahsan Kundi, Manager Climate Change and Climate Finance expert at the National Disaster Risk Management Fund, stressed the importance of strengthening disaster risk financing through public-private partnerships. He said the Fund is supporting the development of Pakistan’s Disaster Risk Financing Strategy Framework to improve financial preparedness before disasters occur. “Effective implementation requires close collaboration among government institutions, financial institutions, insurance providers, development partners and the private sector to ensure financial resources are available before disasters strike and can be deployed rapidly for recovery and reconstruction,” he said.

Noor Aftab, Director Corporate Affairs Pakistan, Middle East, North and West Africa at Tetra Pak, stressed the need for a circular economy and sustainable waste management practices. He said companies should adopt “design for recyclability” principles and invest in recycling infrastructure while governments create enabling policy environments to support sustainable business practices.

Regarding Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), Aftab called for a standardized national framework aligned with global best practices rather than fragmented provincial approaches.

Dr. Mehwish Ramzan, Head of ESG, Environment and Climate Change Governance at Jazz, emphasized the growing role of corporate sector in advancing sustainability, green innovation and climate-smart business practices. She stressed that private-sector investment and ESG-driven governance could help accelerate Pakistan’s transition toward a resilient and low-carbon economy.

The webinar was moderated by Saleha Qureshi, Lead Industrial Decarbonization Project of SDPI that brought together climate experts, policymakers, researchers, development practitioners and private-sector representatives to discuss pathways for accelerating climate action and sustainable development in Pakistan.