PM Shehbaz urges grant-based climate finance

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday urged grant-based financing for countries affected by climate change, while also warning against “weaponising water.”
“National effort cannot replace a fair and just global response when climate disaster strikes. Vulnerable countries need timely help and finance that does not deepen their debt. We call for grant-based finance, including public-private partnerships, alongside significant enhancement of resilience and adaptation funds, which amount to survival funds, especially for struggling economies,” said PM Shehbaz at the COP31 summit in the Turkish city of Antalya.
He said that water “must never be weaponised” and that no nation should be allowed to put the lives and livelihoods of people downstream at risk. “Water sharing agreements must be honoured,” he said.
The prime minister said national efforts to combat climate change could not replace a fair and just global response. “When climate disasters strike, vulnerable countries need timely help and finance that does not deepen their debt,” he said.
PM Shehbaz called for grant-based financing, including public-private partnerships, alongside a significant increase in resilience and adaptation funds, which he described as essential for the survival of struggling economies.
The prime minister recalled the devastating floods in Pakistan, highlighting the human and economic consequences of climate-related disasters.
He recounted the story of a young man in Buner who was just two days away from his wedding when flash floods struck his village in August 2025. “A home preparing for celebration became a house of mourning,” he said.
PM Shehbaz said he had visited families who had lost their homes, livelihoods and loved ones in the floods. He said their suffering reflected the experiences of millions of people in Pakistan and across the developing world who had contributed the least to climate change but were facing its most severe consequences.
Referring to the devastating floods of 2022, the prime minister said one-third of Pakistan had been submerged, affecting 33 million people.