Pakistan, May 22 -- The State Bank has done what many political speeches have failed to do. The warning is as stark as it could be. Climatic disasters in Pakistan are said to have been higher than both global and regional averages in 2000-24, as well as in the preceding two decades. The Bank's half-yearly economic report also noted that Pakistan was the 15th most affected country from climatic events between 1995 and 2024.

Climate disasters cost Pakistan $29.3 billion between 1992 and 2021. The 2022 floods alone caused damage of about $28 billion. The World Bank estimates cited by the SBP are harsher still: climate change could cut Pakistan's GDP by 4.5 per cent to 6.5 per cent by 2050, even in an optimistic scenario. Agriculture and ind...