ISLAMABAD(National Times)- Health and environmental experts in Pakistan have called for urgent measures to address growing climate-related health risks after a Lancet report warned that rising heat-related deaths, floods, droughts and economic losses are outpacing global efforts to combat climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2026 Lancet Countdown report, launched at the British Library in London, called for climate change to be recognised as a \u201cglobal health emergency\u201d, warning that climate-related health risks continue to worsen a decade after the Paris Agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The report found that average annual heat-related deaths worldwide have risen 36 per cent since the Paris Agreement. In 2023, heat was linked to a record 710,000 deaths, with more than 70pc attributed to human-caused climate change. Meanwhile, heat-related economic losses reached an estimated $1.07 trillion in 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former Punjab health minister Professor Dr Javed Akram told Dawn that the warning was particularly urgent for Pakistan, where the devastating 2022 floods displaced communities, damaged health care infrastructure, disrupted access to essential medicines and increased the risk of waterborne diseases and malnutrition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExtreme heat further threatens vulnerable populations, particularly children, older adults, outdoor workers and people living with chronic illnesses,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Akram criticised Pakistan\u2019s disaster management approach, saying policies had historically been reactive rather than proactive, with preparations beginning only after disasters strike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPakistan must strengthen heat-health action plans, establish effective early-warning systems, climate-proof hospitals, improve disease surveillance, and expand access to safe water and sanitation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He urged federal and provincial governments to allocate dedicated funding for climate-resilient health care and called on international partners to provide predictable, grant-based climate finance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former special assistant to the prime minister on health Dr Zafar Mirza also warned that climate change had become a growing public health emergency in Pakistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExtreme heat, flash floods, cloud bursts and worsening air quality cause illness and death, while disrupting healthcare, contaminating water, undermining nutrition and deepening poverty and psychological distress,\u201d he told Dawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Mirza said Pakistan needed climate-resilient health facilities, stronger disease surveillance, early-warning systems and coordinated action across health, climate, water, energy and finance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Muhammad Irfan Khan, professor of environmental science and former dean at International Islamic University, expressed concern that Lancet Countdown\u2019s launch statement did not mention Pakistan despite its exposure to climate-related disasters. \u201cPakistan\u2019s experience should inform global priorities, research and investment,\u201d he said, citing Germanwatch\u2019s Climate Risk Index 2025, which ranked Pakistan as the country most affected by extreme weather in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He urged international institutions to give greater visibility to vulnerable countries and ensure affected communities help shape climate responses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD(National Times)- Health and environmental experts in Pakistan have called for urgent measures to address growing climate-related health risks after a Lancet report warned that rising heat-related deaths, floods, droughts and economic losses are outpacing global efforts to combat climate change. The 2026 Lancet Countdown report, launched at the British Library in London, called for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":135609,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-135608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest_news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n