Climate crisis: Who should pay to rebuild Pakistan? - Financial Times
Climate crisis: Who should pay to rebuild Pakistan? | Financial Times
Climate crisis: Who should pay to rebuild Pakistan?
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Climate disasters are becoming more and more common, and the countries most vulnerable to them are often the ones emitting the least pollution. That imbalance has sparked a debate on whether rich, polluting nations have a responsibility to contribute more when there are climate catastrophes. In today’s episode, we’re looking at one country that serves as an example: Pakistan. We’ll discuss how it plans to fund its recovery after record-breaking floods – worsened by climate change – submerged much of the south Asian country last year.
Clips from Sky News Australia, Al Jazeera, Channel 4 News
For further reading:
Rebuilding Pakistan: how much should rich nations help?
‘It’s the fault of climate change’: Pakistan seeks ‘justice’ after floods
Debt burden traps global south in a vicious circle
On Twitter, follow Ben Parkin ( @b_parkyn), Camilla Hodgson ( @CamillaHodgson), and Michela Tindera ( @mtindera07)
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
View our accessibility guide.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”