ISLAMABAD, Sep 27(ABC): Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday exposed the truth about the global climate fund, noting that there is no financial facility to tackle climate change impacts like the super floods faced by Pakistan today.
Addressing a talk at the Wilson Center in Washington on Tuesday, Bilawal said that when a third of the country fell under water and a 100 square kilometer lake emerged in the middle of Sind, help sought from the green climate fund proved futile when they were told there was no money in it.
“Today it is Pakistan, it could be anybody tomorrow,” Bilawal warned.
The foreign minister added that the country was facing food insecurity in the post-flood situation due to supply line issues.
He added that the Ukraine crisis had exacerbated the threat of food security.
“We have a very difficult situation because of some decisions we have taken in the past,” he said, in a veiled reference to decisions taken by former prime minister Imran Khan on importing urea and gas.
Bilawal further said that apart from managing the flood, they also had a crippling economic crisis on their hands, noting that they received a tranche from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in August.
Talking about climate change, he said that Pakistan contributes less than a percent of the global carbon footprint, yet it is among the top 10 most vulnerable to climate change. Referring to the visit of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Bilawal recalled how the body’s chief said that helping Pakistan was about economic and climatic justice.