At COP31, PM Shehbaz calls for debt-free climate support for vulnerable countries

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday called for grant-based climate financing and a significant increase in resilience and adaptation funds at the Antalya Leaders Summit of COP31, the 31st UN Climate Change Conference.

He said vulnerable countries need support that does not add to their debt, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported.

What did PM Shehbaz say about grant-based climate financing at COP31?

Sharif said disaster-hit countries need timely assistance that does not deepen their debt, and backed public-private partnerships as a source of grant-based funding.

He called resilience and adaptation money, in effect, survival money for struggling economies facing ever more destructive disasters.

How have climate disasters affected Pakistan?

Sharif pointed to Pakistan’s own losses to make the case. The 2022 floods submerged a third of the country, affected 33 million people, killed more than 1,700 and caused economic losses above $30 billion, he said.

He also described the August 2025 flash floods in Buner, where a young man was two days from his wedding when floodwater swept through his village. The family’s home, prepared for celebration, became a house of mourning.

Sharif said such cases reflect the position of millions in Pakistan and across the developing world, who have contributed least to climate change yet carry its heaviest costs. He recalled warning at the United Nations four years ago that Pakistan’s experience would not stay within its borders, and said that warning had since come true.

“Climate change knows no borders. No nation can face it alone. Solidarity must mean action,” he said.

The prime minister thanked Turkey, and in particular President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, First Lady Emine Erdogan and the Turkish people, for supporting Pakistan during the 2010 and 2022 floods. He also thanked Turkey for hosting COP31 and recognized Australia’s role as President of Negotiations.

What is Pakistan doing on clean energy and emissions?

Sharif said the country had added more than 20 gigawatts of distributed solar capacity in two years and now draws nearly 55 per cent of its energy from clean sources. He said he had watched the dome of the Chashma-5 Nuclear Power Plant being put in place on his way to Antalya.

Once commissioned, the plant will add 1,200 megawatts of clean, emission-free electricity. Pakistan is also expanding electric mobility, he said, and has set a target of cutting projected emissions by up to 50 per cent by 2035.

What did Sharif say about water security and COP31 commitments?

Sharif said water must never be used as a weapon and that no country should be allowed to endanger the lives and livelihoods of downstream populations. He called for water-sharing agreements to be honored in letter and spirit.

He closed by urging leaders to turn their commitments into action. The success of COP31, he said, should be judged by the families protected, the resources delivered and the sustained action taken to safeguard the planet, not by promises.