ISLAMABAD: British High Commissioner to Pakistan Jane Marriott announced her country’s decision to double its investment in Pakistan to mitigate the impact of climate change while addressing an event to celebrate the 76th birthday of King Charles on Tuesday.
The United Kingdom hosted the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2021 where the participating countries agreed to accelerate action to limit global warming by reducing carbon emissions and phase down coal use.
A Pakistani delegation was also present at the event and announced the government’s plan to shift to convert 30 percent of its transportation to electric vehicles and generate 60 percent of all energy from renewable sources by 2030.
Pakistan, which accounts for 0.50 percent of global carbon emissions, is among the top ten countries most impacted by climate change in the world and has witnessed devastating floods and heatwaves in recent years.
Britain and Pakistan are working together to deal with the climate change issue which has started to gain increased significance for the South Asian country.
“The UK is pushing for a more substantial, greener, and fairer international financial response to climate change,” the British high commissioner was quoted as saying by the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) news agency.
The APP said she “announced doubling of her country’s investment in Pakistan to tackle climate change, enhance climate resilience, and promote adaptation” at the occasion.
“This expansion will cover more areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and the Federal Capital Territory, aiming to minimize the risk of forest fires and safeguard lives and Pakistan’s biodiversity,” she added.
The British diplomat said the bilateral relations of the two countries were on a positive trajectory, adding that the two sides consulted each other on several regional and international issues.
Pakistan’s caretaker foreign minister Jalil Abbas Jilani was also present at the event.
He recalled the monsoon floods which created a lot of devastation last year while pointing out that his country was extremely grateful to the British government for the generous assistance to deal with climate-related challenges.
