Who Makes Climate Policy in Pakistan?

  Written by Abdul Rehman Niazi Climate change is not a future problem for Pakistan, it is our present reality. The country is already endu...

 Written by Abdul Rehman Niazi

Climate change is not a future problem for Pakistan, it is our present reality. The country is already enduring devastating floods, choking smog, record-breaking heatwaves, and disappearing glaciers. Each disaster leaves behind not just wrecked infrastructure but also shattered families, lost livelihoods, and generations pushed further into poverty.

Every time a flood or heatwave strikes, Pakistan’s first response is usually a wave of donations, fundraising drives, and charity campaigns. While these gestures are compassionate, they are not solutions. Relief goods can feed families for a few weeks, but they cannot rebuild broken drainage systems, enforce urban zoning laws, or stop glacial lakes from bursting. Charity cannot create early warning systems or strengthen embankments. It cannot design a sustainable energy policy or negotiate international climate finance. The truth is stark: donations save lives in the short term, but without long-term, enforceable policy, we are doomed to repeat the cycle of disaster, loss, and helplessness.

That is why the focus must shift from charity to governance, understanding how climate policy is made, who holds power, and how ordinary citizens can push those institutions toward real action.

What happened in 2025: Cloudbursts, floods, and a system pushed to collapse:

The summer of 2025 once again showed how unprepared Pakistan remains. From June through August, more than 700 people lost their lives in rain-related incidents. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Jammu & Kashmir faced deadly cloudbursts and flash floods. Karachi experienced its heaviest rainfall since 1979, with some areas recording more than four times the capacity of its outdated drainage system. In Gilgit-Baltistan, glacial lake outburst floods washed away bridges and even portions of the Karakoram Highway, cutting communities off from critical supplies.

These events were not surprises. Meteorologists had warned of heavier-than-usual monsoons, and researchers have long highlighted the risk of glacial lake outbursts. Yet the devastation unfolded almost identically to previous years, because the state apparatus did not act on those warnings. Early alert systems failed to reach people in mountain valleys. Drainage channels in major cities were clogged with solid waste and illegal encroachments. Mountain infrastructure was built without resilience measures. In every case, ordinary citizens were left to fend for themselves.

Where governance faltered:

The 2025 floods revealed the same chronic weaknesses that have plagued Pakistan’s disaster management for decades:

• Weak early warning systems: Forecasts were issued, but in many rural areas no actionable evacuation orders or local alerts reached the public.
• Outdated and neglected urban infrastructure: Karachi’s drainage system was designed for rainfall far less intense than what fell in August. Many drains were either clogged or narrowed due to encroachment.
• Neglect of high-risk mountain areas: Glacial lake outbursts are known risks, yet protective works, monitoring systems, and safer bridge designs have been delayed for years.
• Implementation gaps: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) issued advisories, but provincial and district bodies failed to clear drains, enforce zoning laws, or prepare shelters in time.

The result was preventable tragedy: lives lost not only because of rain but because of poor governance.

Understanding policy-making: who is responsible?

Federal Institutions

• Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC): The lead national body for climate governance. It drafts major policies such as the National Climate Change Policy (NCCP), oversees Pakistan’s commitments under the Paris Agreement, and negotiates at global platforms. However, since environment was devolved to provinces after the 18th Constitutional Amendment, MoCC often struggles with enforcement power.
• Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA): Responsible for enforcing the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act (PEPA 1997), approving Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), and setting environmental quality standards. In practice, limited staff and political interference weaken its role.
• Global Climate Change Impact Studies Centre (GCCISC): A research institute that provides scientific guidance on climate risks in water, food, health, and energy. It helped prepare Pakistan’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB): Protects Margalla Hills National Park, empowered under the 2023 Wildlife Act.
• Zoological Survey of Pakistan (ZSP): Conducts biodiversity surveys and advises on wildlife protection.
• Climate Resilient Urban Human Settlements (CRUHS) Unit: Established in 2019, this unit develops strategies for sustainable and climate-resilient cities.

Provincial Governments:

Under the 18th Amendment, provinces are responsible for environmental regulation, climate adaptation measures, and service delivery in key areas such as water, sanitation, agriculture, and health. However, their capacity is uneven, and coordination with the federal level is often weak.

Local Governments:
Local governments should be the frontline of climate resilience, responsible for drainage systems, solid waste management, building approvals, and local emergency response. Unfortunately, Pakistan’s local governments are often sidelined, underfunded, or dissolved for political reasons. This undermines the ability to act quickly at the community level.

Disaster Management Authorities

• NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority): Sets national disaster policy, coordinates with provinces, and manages international aid.
• PDMAs (Provincial Disaster Management Authorities): Tasked with operational preparedness, relief, and recovery within provinces.
• DDMAs (District Disaster Management Authorities): The grassroots level, responsible for clearing drains, ensuring local evacuations, setting up shelters, and enforcing safety rules.

Intergovernmental Coordination

The Council of Common Interests (CCI) is meant to align federal and provincial roles, while the National Finance Commission (NFC) distributes funds. In practice, coordination is slow, and climate often ranks lower on the political priority list than short-term economic or electoral concerns.

Pakistan’s policy frameworks:

Pakistan has several strong climate policies on paper:

• National Climate Change Policy (NCCP): Integrates climate across all vulnerable sectors. Focuses on pro-poor adaptation, disaster-risk reduction, resilient infrastructure, and low-carbon growth.
• National Clean Air Policy (NCAP): Provides a framework for monitoring and improving air quality nationwide.
• National Forest Policy: Promotes mass afforestation, sustainable forest management, and the expansion of urban green spaces.
• Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs): Pakistan’s climate pledge under the Paris Agreement: a 50% cut in emissions by 2030 (conditional on international support), major adaptation programs, and a shift toward renewable energy and reforestation.

The problem is not policy design, it is weak enforcement, lack of coordination, underfunding, and minimal accountability.

Why you must know this:

Understanding which institution is responsible for what gives power to public pressure. If drains are not cleared before monsoon, the municipal corporation and district disaster authority must answer. If glacial lake monitoring is neglected, the provincial government and NDMA are accountable. If emissions reduction targets are ignored, the Ministry of Climate Change must be pressed. Without this clarity, frustration gets directed into charity alone, helpful but never transformative.

Moving from charity to systemic change:

Pakistan’s future depends on shifting from reactive relief campaigns to proactive, enforceable governance. Some key steps forward include:

1. Strengthen early warning systems and communication: Forecasts must translate into local evacuation alerts, drills, and enforceable safety measures.
2. Invest in resilient infrastructure: Drainage systems, embankments, roads, and bridges must be redesigned for climate realities, not outdated assumptions.
3. Empower local governments: Municipal bodies must be given authority and resources to prepare for floods, heatwaves, and droughts.
4. Enforce environmental laws: Strict penalties for illegal construction, encroachment on waterways, and pollution violations.
5. Link funding to performance: Budget allocations should be conditional on measurable climate readiness indicators.
6. Civic monitoring: Universities, media, and citizen groups should track and publish annual “climate readiness scorecards” for districts.

Conclusion

Climate change is Pakistan’s defining challenge. The 2025 floods once again exposed how charity and temporary relief cannot protect us from systemic failure. What will make the difference is policy, enforcement, and accountability. As students and future leaders, your role is not just to donate when disaster strikes, but to stay informed, demand accountability, and pressure institutions to act before the next flood.

Only collective awareness and sustained civic engagement can push Pakistan toward becoming a truly climate-resilient nation.