UN pledges to build disaster-resilient Pakistan

PESHAWAR: The United Nations Development Program has pledged to build a disaster-resilient nation through the glacial lakes’ outburst flood (Glof-II) project, saying Pakistan is ranked eighth among nations most vulnerable to extreme weathers.

As part of the National Resilience Day celebration at the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University in Sheringal, Upper Dir, Hamad Baig of the Glof-II project explained, “We’re working to further empower communities to identify and manage risks associated with glacial lakes outburst flooding and related impacts of climate change, strengthen public services to lower the risk of disasters, and improve community preparedness and disaster response capacities in eight districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

The occasion was attended by representatives of the UNDP Glof-II project and PDMA, the provost, the registrar, Sheringal, students, and staff from the Rescue 1122 and civil defense departments.

According to the event’s organizers, the gathering was arranged to show support for the families of those who lost loved ones in the natural disaster.

They said that the Green Climate Fund financed the Glof-II project, which was carried out by the UNDP, the climate change ministry, and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government.

Hamad Baig said that the purpose of the day was to increase public awareness of the catastrophic effects of disasters brought on by climate change, with a particular emphasis on disaster resilience.

In order to address environmental issues, manage natural resources, conserve the environment, and slow down climate change, we [the UNDP] support the government of Pakistan. We aim to align government priorities with the climate change agenda with the climate change ministry, he said.

 “We [UNDP] support the government of Pakistan in tackling environmental challenges, natural resource management, environmental protection, and climate change mitigation. Together with the climate change ministry, we work on integrating government priorities to the climate change agenda,” he said.

Mohammad Javed, who was there as well as the deputy director for disaster risk management, stated that the 2005 earthquake had severely damaged the province’s northern regions.

He said that as a result of climate change, more frequent extreme weather events, excessive temperatures, and an increase in temperature-related disasters, risks and uncertainties were rising in the area.