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1pc of GDP lost to climate damage: Musadik
KARACHI: Pakistan is losing close to 1 per cent of its gross domestic product every year to climate-related damage from floods, heatwaves and infrastructure destruction, despite contributing less than 1 per cent to global emissions.
Speaking at the fourth Pakistan Climate Conference, organised by the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) on Monday, Climate Change Minister Musadik Malik stressed the need to fight climate challenges with the same intensity as the fight against terrorism.
The stress was underlined by stark statistics: the human toll has already surpassed that of past conflicts. Over the last four floods alone, 6,000 people have died, and 19,000 have been disabled or injured, while more than 40 million have been displaced.
Economically, Mr Malik added, Pakistan celebrates growth rates of 3-4pc, only for floods to wipe out nearly 10pc of GDP, erasing years of progress in a single season. From record 53°C heatwaves to floods that displaced millions last year and the accelerated melting of more than 13,000 glaciers, he said the crisis could no longer be treated as an environmental issue or a corporate social responsibility exercise, but as an existential economic challenge.
Pakistan’s updated climate commitments under Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) 3.0, which target a 50pc emissions reduction by 2035, would require an estimated $565.7bn in investment, underscoring the scale of the transition ahead.
In a recorded message, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb reiterated that climate change now poses an existential threat to Pakistan. While key frameworks such as the National Adaptation Plan, Climate Prosperity Plan and green taxonomy are in place, he said the emphasis must shift decisively from policy design to execution. Although the devastating 2022 floods were largely confined to one river system and two provinces, last year’s floods affected all provinces and three river systems, which is clear evidence of rising intensity and frequency.
Rather than lamenting financing gaps, Mr Aurangzeb urged stakeholders to better utilise funding already on the table from multilateral donors. The problem, he noted, was not the absence of capital but the inability to operationalise compounded by large bureaucracies and prolonged accreditation delays, a frustration echoed by several speakers.
The finance minister called on companies to prioritise knowledge transfer from their global operations into Pakistan, arguing that climate excellence depends as much on institutional capacity, data and governance as it does on capital.
For OICCI president Yousaf Hussain, however, there were signs of momentum. He pointed to Pakistan’s push for adaptation finance through public-private partnerships at Davos, the finalisation of the World Bank’s $20 billion, 10-year Country Partnership Framework, and preparations for Pakistan’s first Green Panda Bond as signals of a more credible national commitment to climate resilience.
Projecting a shift from advocacy to execution, OICCI announced its second Climate Excellence and Climate Action Awards at the conference’s conclusion, with Nestle Pakistan winning the Climate Excellence Award and Dawlance bagging the Climate Action Award.
Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The utilisation of Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) funds has inched up to 27 per cent in the first seven months of 2025-26, up from 21pc a month earlier.
As of Jan 31, ministries and divisions have sanctioned an amount of Rs338.2 billion against which Rs272.8bn has reported expenditure”, the Ministry of Planning and Development said in its Monthly Development Outlook for February. This works out to 27pc of the Rs1 trillion annual PSDP allocation.
The utilisation, however, remains well behind the disbursement schedule approved by the government, but is relatively higher than last year. The PSDP expenditure in the first seven months of the last fiscal year had stood at Rs220bn, accounting for 20pc of the Rs1.096tr.
Under the mechanism announced by the Ministry of Finance for FY26, the PSDP spending should have crossed at least Rs443bn (43pc) of the allocation.
Utilisation in the infrastructure sector amounted to Rs156.4bn over seven months, almost 25pc of its budget allocation of Rs614.717bn. Within the infrastructure sector, the transport and communication sector received the highest allocation of Rs325.62bn, but it could spend only Rs80.5bn, or 24.7pc.
The energy sector and the physical planning & housing sector recorded expenditures of Rs10.69bn (just 8.5pc) and Rs30.93bn (45pc), respectively, against allocations of Rs122.65bn and Rs68.643bn, respectively.
The water sector, with an allocation of Rs97.8bn, reported expenditure of Rs34.33bn as of January 31. The social sector was allocated Rs178.25bn, of which Rs65.302bn was allocated to the education sector, including Higher Education, which spent Rs24.38bn.
The health and nutrition sector utilised Rs3.66bn against Rs16.54bn, while ‘others’, smaller sectors, utilised Rs4.13bn against Rs26.4bn. The science and IT sector utilised Rs8.37bn against Rs42.744bn, while the food & agriculture sector spent Rs1.1bn.
Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2026
India plans to maintain multiple sources of energy supply and diversify them when needed as New Delhi looks to ensure consumers receive “adequate energy at the right price through reliable and secure supplies”, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Monday.
Misri was responding to a question at a media briefing seeking clarity on India’s position on the purchase of Russian oil after US President Donald Trump said last week that New Delhi had “committed to stop directly or indirectly” importing it.
“India’s priority is to safeguard the interests of its consumers through an energy policy driven by adequate availability, fair pricing, and reliability of supply,” Misri said.
He added that India was neither dependent on any single source for crude oil nor did it “intend to be”, importing from a “mix of sources” depending on “objective market conditions”, adding that “national interests” guide both the government and Indian energy companies.
Last week, Trump signed an executive order lifting the punitive 25% tariff on all imports from India over its purchase of Russian oil.
The Kremlin earlier said it saw nothing new in India’s announcement that it would diversify its energy sourcing.
India’s Russian oil imports slipped in January as refiners sought more alternative barrels under Western sanctions pressure and US-India trade talks, Reuters reported.
1pc of GDP lost to climate damage: Musadik
Moody’s revises Pakistan banking outlook from ‘positive’ to ‘stable’
Development spending reaches 27pc in 7 months
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