ISLAMABAD (Nazrana Times): Pakistan could face substantial declines in cotton, maize, rice and wheat yields under future scenarios with high greenhouse gas emissions, experts said at the 29th Sustainable Development Conference. They called for climate-resilient farming, stronger adaptation measures and policies to protect communities most exposed to climate risks.

The discussion took place on the second day of the conference during a session titled “Rethinking Development through the Three Es”. The Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) organised the session at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU), bringing together researchers and practitioners to examine development through the lenses of environment, economy and equity.

Locally Produced Ethanol Could Reduce Fuel Import Dependence

Dr Muhammad Arshad Virk of the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore, said locally produced ethanol could diversify Pakistan’s fuel supply and reduce dependence on imported petroleum products. He said transport accounted for around 80% of the country’s petroleum product consumption and was a major contributor to air pollution in cities such as Lahore.

Virk said greater ethanol use could save foreign exchange, reduce transport emissions and particulate pollution, and help lower healthcare costs associated with poor air quality. He said Pakistan’s policy largely left ethanol blending voluntary, limiting the industry’s potential.

He called for a long-term policy to encourage domestic consumption, give investors greater confidence and ensure that sugarcane farmers, agricultural workers and rural communities share in the benefits.

Closing the Gap Between Climate Finance and Infrastructure

Ahmed Hassan Awan of Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi, said Pakistan was giving environmental concerns more attention in development policy, but implementation had yet to deliver ecological security. He said equity determines who bears climate risks, who benefits from adaptation measures and whether vulnerable communities have a say in decisions.

Awan said national policies were paying more attention to climate finance, the energy transition, infrastructure protection and nature-based solutions. Environmental protection, however, was often prioritised only when its economic or human benefits could be demonstrated, he said.

Bushra Yaqub of COMSATS University Islamabad discussed the gap between climate finance commitments and the delivery of resilient infrastructure to vulnerable communities. Her research highlighted how floods, extreme rainfall, heatwaves and water shortages had exposed weaknesses in infrastructure, public institutions, financial planning and disaster preparedness. She called for economic, environmental and equity considerations to be addressed together when planning infrastructure.

Smaller Exporters Need Support to Meet EU Carbon Requirements

Fayaz Hassan of Wuhan University, China, examined how the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) could affect Pakistan’s export competitiveness, access to EU markets and the distribution of compliance costs.

Using Eurostat trade data at the eight-digit product-code level, Hassan said Pakistan’s exports to the EU of products covered by the mechanism rose from €5.46 million in 2017 to €50.87 million in 2025. Pakistan’s ranking among developing-country suppliers improved from 45th to 33rd.

He called for stronger domestic capacity to verify emissions and for technical assistance to help smaller exporters meet environmental requirements without being priced out of international markets.

Offline Weather Guide Proposed for Smallholder Farmers

Muhammad Abdullah Khan of Cadet College Hasanabdal said weather bulletins, forecasts and advisories were available in Pakistan, but many smallholder farmers struggled to turn technical information into timely decisions about sowing, irrigation and crop protection.

He proposed an affordable guide that could be used without internet access. It would use visual symbols and instructions in local languages to help farmers interpret forecasts and decide what action to take.

Solar Expansion Raises Questions About Who Pays for the Grid

Power sector professional Syed Iftikhar Ali said Pakistan’s installed capacity under net metering had risen from 2.8 gigawatts to 7.3 gigawatts. He attributed the shift towards distributed solar generation to higher electricity tariffs and concerns about the reliability of grid supply.

Ali said declining electricity purchases from the grid did not automatically reduce network and generation capacity costs. He warned that recovering those costs mainly through charges based on electricity consumption could place a greater burden on consumers who remain dependent on the grid, including low-income households, tenants and apartment residents with limited scope to install solar panels.

Heatwaves and Drought Put Farmers and Workers at Risk

SDPI researcher Amna Urooj said heatwaves and drought should be examined together because their effects were closely linked to economic insecurity and social inequality. She identified smallholder farmers in South Punjab and arid parts of Sindh and Balochistan as particularly vulnerable because of limited access to insurance, climate information and financial protection.

Urooj also highlighted the risks faced by residents of informal settlements, outdoor workers and women engaged in home-based work. She said these groups often had limited access to reliable electricity, water, ventilation and cooling.

Dr Shumaila Zeb of SZABIST Islamabad and Dr Samreen Fahim Babar of Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, also contributed to the discussion.