Last week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made a strong plea at the United Nations: “Loans over loans, adding to loans is not a solution.” He urged the international community to honour its commitments on climate finance and provide grants, not debt, to vulnerable nations like Pakistan.
His words ring true. Debt-driven climate finance cannot address a crisis that has already drowned villages, destroyed livelihoods, and displaced millions. Pakistan, still reeling from the scars of the 2022 floods, faces a worsening climate reality. This year’s monsoon rains alone have impacted over five million people, destroyed 4,100 villages, and claimed more than 1,000 lives.
Earlier this year, the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs was told that out of the $10 billion pledged for post-flood recovery, only $500 million came as grants. The rest loans. And yet, even where grants have been received, the outcomes on the ground remain disappointing. As much as Pakistan needs grants and climate reparations, it also needs to be brutally honest about how those funds are being used.
Pakistan requires $348 billion between 2023 and 2030 to cope with climate impacts $152 billion of which must go to adaptation and resilience. Yet, our current spending on adaptation is barely six percent of what’s required.
Clearly, more money is needed. But just as clearly, money alone is not enough. Nowhere is this clearer than in Gilgit-Baltistan, where communities are once again facing devastating glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). The recent floods in Gilgit-Baltistan wiped out forests, farmland, and livelihoods despite millions of dollars spent under donor-funded projects to build early warning systems and resilience.
Grants can help us rebuild, but only accountability and local empowerment can help us endure
On paper, the projects look promising. In reality, they have failed to deliver. Social media is full of heart-wrenching testimonies from residents who never received warnings, never saw local infrastructure built, and never felt safer despite years of funding.
Public frustration is rising. People are tired of climate projects that spend millions on hotel seminars, workshops, and reports, but leave vulnerable communities no more prepared than before. Pakistan has received over $5 billion for climate resilience and disaster preparedness since 2022. Yet each flood season, we face the same reality: no effective early warning systems, no disaster response capacity, and stranded families waiting for rescue.
The truth is painful: we are losing lives not only because of climate change, but also because of weak governance, poor accountability, and a lack of local participation.
Adaptation is inherently local. It’s about communities building resilience, not just governments signing MoUs. Yet Pakistan’s adaptation landscape is dominated by top-down projects, centralised decision-making, and weak provincial or local government involvement.
Without strong institutions, transparent audits, and grassroots participation, even the best-intentioned grants risk being wasted.
Grants are not gifts; they are acts of global solidarity. But to translate that solidarity into real protection, certain foundations must be in place. First, good governance is essential. Climate funds must be managed transparently, with clearly defined responsibilities and performance-based outcomes. Projects should undergo independent audits, and their results must be publicly shared to build trust and credibility.
Second, strong accountability must ensure that every rupee is traceable, with rigorous oversight to guarantee that funds reach those who need them most, rather than being absorbed by bureaucratic overheads or spent on hotel seminars. Third, meaningful community participation is vital. Local communities, especially women, farmers, and youth, must be at the centre of planning, implementation, and monitoring. Without their ownership and input, adaptation efforts will remain superficial, failing to reflect the realities on the ground.
Globally, climate finance works best when future funding is linked to verified outcomes. Donors and international partners must move beyond compliance checklists and insist on impact-based financing. Pakistan, too, must strengthen its climate governance architecture. Without devolved powers and active local governments, resilience will remain a slogan rather than a system.
Yes, Pakistan deserves grants and reparations. The principle of climate justice demands it. But justice also demands that we use those funds wisely, efficiently, and equitably. Because the real tragedy is not just that the floods keep coming, it’s that our people keep suffering the same losses, year after year, while billions flow through systems that fail them.
This is especially relevant as countries like Pakistan push for operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund, a historic mechanism to compensate nations most affected by climate change. The fund must indeed deliver grants, not loans, but also demand results. It must be anchored in transparency, local empowerment, and measurable outcomes. Without these safeguards, even the Loss and Damage Fund risks becoming another revolving door of paperwork and pledges.
Grants can help us rebuild, but only accountability and local empowerment can help us endure.