World urged to help Afghanistan fight climate change

KABUL (Pajhwok): The National Environment Protection Authority (NEPA) head has accused the international community of discriminatory treatment, calling for the resumption of climate change projects.

He said this at the national conference on the impact of climate change on Afghanistan, held in Kabul by NEPA in collaboration with The Liaison Office (TLO).

NEPA chief Maulvi Matiul Haq Khalis said in his speech the effects of climate change were not limited to a particular region. If not controlled, he warned, climate change would affect the whole world.

On the impacts of the phenomenon, Khalis said Afghanistan, producing only 0.06 percent of greenhouse gases, was the sixth worst-affected country.

The NEPA chief hit out at the discriminatory treatment of the international community, saying all projects related to climate change had been suspended in the country after the IEA takeover.

Khalis also slammed the global fraternity for not inviting IEA to international conferences on the issue. He asked the world to cooperate with Kabul in fighting climate change -- irrespective of political considerations.

Deputy Minister of Energy and Water Mujeebur-Rahman Omar Akhundzada said 14 percent of Afghanistan’s snow had melted due to climate change, triggering floods.

Pointing to the suffering of the Afghans because of the crisis, Akhundzada urged the world to help the interim government combat the situation.

UNAMA head Roza Otunbayeva highlighted the challenges being faced by the people of Afghanistan because of global warming. She said the situation had also caused the displacement of people.

She promised the UNAMA would do all it could to help the people of Afghanistan deal effectively with climate change.

Otunbayeva said she had talked to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) about the launch of environment protection projects in Afghanistan.

The UNAMA chief added she was trying to get Afghanistan invited to the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Azerbaijan.

EU Charge de Affaires Veronika Bošković Pohar also addressed the conference, saying the issue of combating climate change was already on their agenda. She called the fight against global warming in Afghanistan a joint responsibility.

At the conference, a number of experts held discussions about the impact of climate change and ways of addressing the issue.

UNDP noted in a recent report that droughts, floods, extreme heat and land degradation were increasing in Afghanistan, affecting its agriculture and economy.

aw/mud