Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met with the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, Mr. John Kerry, on the sidelines of the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
The Prime Minister praised Mr. Kerry’s personal leadership in raising awareness and seeking solutions to the climate change crisis, noting that “the devastating floods have made Pakistan ground zero of climate change.” He acknowledged the Biden Administration’s critical role in addressing climate change.
The Prime Minister emphasized that, despite contributing less than 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, Pakistan was one of the ten most vulnerable countries to climate change. Pakistan was facing an unprecedented natural disaster, with over 1400 casualties; 33 million people displaced as climate refugees, including over 600,000 pregnant women; four million acres of crops destroyed, and entire villages and livelihoods swept away.
