During a recent Senate committee meeting on climate change, Arif Goheer from the Global Change Impact Studies Centre (GCISC) highlighted Pakistan’s commitment to reducing its carbon emissions under the Paris Agreement. He provided a detailed overview of Pakistan’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), emphasizing the country’s progress and future strategies. Goheer noted that as per the Paris Agreement, every country is required to share its NDCs every five years. Pakistan submitted its first set of NDCs in 2016, pledging to reduce its projected emissions by 20% by 2030. This commitment was revised in 2021, with a new target of a 50% reduction in emissions, consisting of a 35% conditional reduction and a 15% unconditional reduction. The revised NDCs now include a broader focus, addressing issues like gender, youth, the blue economy, health, and other sectors, in addition to the initial goals. As part of this updated strategy, provincial NDC committees were formed, identifying 59 priority actions to be implemented by 2030. These actions cover a range of areas, including renewable energy, energy efficiency, industrial processes, transport, and waste management. Goheer stressed that the new strategy also prioritizes adaptation and socio-economic measures, aiming to manage loss and damage, improve management and automation processes, and enhance decision-making capabilities. Notable progress has been made in increasing the share of alternative energy: solar energy now represents a 23% increase, bagasse 81%, with other renewable sources reaching 68%. Additionally, nuclear energy has grown by 154%, and hydropower has increased by 50%. He also highlighted that Pakistan anticipates importing 12,000 MW capacity of solar panels, with 8,500 MW already imported. Moreover, the country is working to increase the use of local coal, aiming to reduce dependence on imported coal. From 2019 to 2024, Pakistan has successfully expanded its plantation drive, increasing from 492 million trees to 2.29 billion, while also expanding protected areas from 12% to 19.93%. The meeting also discussed the challenges in provincial ownership of NDCs, which had previously been limited. However, Goheer pointed out that the new provincial committees have clear representation from provincial departments and academic institutions. Three dedicated working groups have been formed to ensure a more comprehensive approach to emission reduction, aiming to include sectoral emissions in both mitigation and adaptation agendas. Goheer further mentioned that Pakistan’s third set of NDCs (NDC 3) will be significantly different from the previous ones. The country plans to include new sectors such as bio-economy, green buildings, green hydrogen, and black carbon into its climate strategies. Additionally, Sustainable Development Goal 13 (SDG13), focused on climate action, will be integrated into the NDC framework. The quantification of financial requirements for implementing NDCs is underway, and a methane roadmap is being prepared. Goheer noted that of the 490 million tons of CO2 equivalent emissions, 125 million tons come from methane, with 109 million tons originating from livestock, 7 million tons from rice cultivation, and the remainder from other sources. The compilation of Pakistan’s greenhouse gas inventory for 2023-24 is also in progress, highlighting the country’s commitment to transparent and effective climate action.
Senate committee discusses Pakistan’s revised NDCs and future strategies
