From Sharm el-Sheikh to Islamabad: Turning Climate Promises into Justice
The landmark agreement at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh on November 20, 2022, marked a historic moment in the global climate struggle. For the first time, the world formally recognised the principle that countries most responsible for climate change must compensate those who suffer its worst consequences. The creation of a “Loss and Damage Fund” is not just a technical achievement—it is a moral breakthrough.
For Pakistan, this development could not be more urgent. The catastrophic floods of 2022 submerged one-third of the country, displaced millions, and inflicted an estimated $30 billion in damages. And yet, Pakistan contributes less than one percent of global carbon emissions. Our tragedy is not the result of our choices, but of others’ relentless burning of fossil fuels in the name of industrial progress. It is an injustice written in the rising waters.
The fund is a recognition of this injustice. But recognition is only the beginning. The world has witnessed too many lofty promises dissipate into political inertia. Climate finance pledges made in Paris and Glasgow remain largely unfulfilled, trapped in negotiations and technicalities. Pakistan and other vulnerable nations must ensure that the “Loss and Damage Fund” does not meet the same fate.
Here, leadership is key. Pakistan’s foreign and climate ministries, in coordination with allies from the Global South, must press for swift operationalisation of the fund—clear timelines, transparent disbursement mechanisms, and adequate financing. The fund must not be symbolic; it must be substantial. Anything less would be an abdication of responsibility by the developed world.
For countries like Pakistan, this is not about aid, nor about charity. It is about reparations—payment for a climate debt incurred by centuries of unchecked industrialisation. It is about justice for farmers who lost their fields, for children forced out of schools, for families who lost everything in floods they did not cause.
The breakthrough at COP27 proves that diplomacy, persistence, and moral clarity can shift the global conversation. But if the fund is to deliver real relief, Pakistan must continue to play a leading role in keeping climate justice on the world’s agenda. The question is not whether the developed world can afford to pay. The question is whether humanity can afford not to.
The ink on the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement is barely dry. Now begins the real test: turning climate promises into climate justice. For Pakistan, survival depends on it.
