The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has called for wealthy nations’ support for Pakistan to cope with the devastating floods that have put over half of the country’s total area under water.

The appeal was made by IPU President Duarte Pacheo while delivering a speech at the inaugural session of the “Third Inter-Parliamentary Union Regional Seminar on Achieving Sustainable Development Goals for Parliaments of Asia-Pacific” here, according to WealthPK.

He underscored that while Pakistan has less than 1% share in greenhouse gas emissions it is bearing the brunt of the climate change consequences.

He said the post-flood situation is dire in Pakistan as the unrelenting floods have rendered homeless over 30 million people across large swathes of the country, killing hundreds and destroying infrastructure.

He expressed his deep pain for the people and families hit by the natural disaster and emphasised that rich nations need to come to the rescue of the marooned people as Pakistan could not handle the catastrophe on its own. He stressed that the larger emitters should reassess their policies to reduce their share in greenhouse gas emissions.

Duarte Pacheo said the biggest economies are in fact the major emitters, and they should be in the forefront to cope with the challenge of climate change.

The IPU president stressed that realising sustainable development goals and protecting the environment need massive efforts involving all stakeholders, highlighting Pakistan is committed to implementing the SDGs, which are crucial for ameliorating the sufferings of the people in poor countries.

Duarte Pacheo said though the Covid-19 pandemic has slowed the progress on SDGs, infusion of fresh commitment is needed to achieve the results by 2030.

He stressed that inequalities and poverty in the developing world could be tackled only through true implementation of the SDGs, and that the parliamentarians have a special role to play in that regard.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk