Daily Times

Senator Sherry Rahman, Chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Environmental Change, emphasized the urgent need for Adaptive Social Protection (ASP) to support vulnerable communities in Pakistan during her address at the National Dialogue on Adaptive Social Protection. Highlighting the country’s position at the frontline of global warming, she stressed that it is critical to invest in vulnerable communities to help them withstand the growing impacts of climate shocks.

Senator Rahman explained that ASP is essential to build resilience against climate risks, which are disproportionately affecting Pakistan. “As a nation, we are on the frontlines of global warming, facing high impacts. Therefore, we need to create strong protective measures to safeguard our communities from increasing fragility,” she said.

She emphasized that resilience should go beyond infrastructure and should be integrated into all aspects of community planning. “Resilience must include higher development buffers, access to safe water, sanitation, education, and healthcare to ensure that people can survive climate emergencies with greater resilience,” Senator Rehman stated.

Senator Rehman highlighted the importance of continuing and expanding social protection programs like the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP), which provided assistance to 2.5 million families during the 2022 floods. She noted that these programs play a vital role in ensuring communities are protected and can recover from climate-related disasters.

Senator also stressed the critical need to empower women as key agents of change in climate resilience efforts. “Women must be not only recipients of adaptive actions but also active participants in shaping climate resilience strategies. A good example is Sindh’s initiative to give women rights to their reconstructed housing, recognizing that women are disproportionately impacted by climate and other emergencies.

Senator Rehman pointed out several key social challenges in Pakistan, including the growing number of children out of school, particularly girls in areas where schools are far from their residences. She stated that these education barriers further hinder progress, particularly for girls. The senator also highlighted the increasing poverty in the country, which is contributing to a range of large-scale problems. She warned that during floods and other natural disasters, diseases like dengue spread rapidly, affecting both humans and livestock, with mosquitoes becoming a deadly threat.

Moreover, Senator Rehman stressed the severe economic impact of these disasters on families, many of whom suffer significant financial losses. She called for immediate action to address these interconnected issues to prevent further damage to both the environment and vulnerable communities in Pakistan.