PM Shah Calls for Global Cooperation to Address Climate Change Risks

Kathmandu: Prime Minister Balendra Shah has said he will call for global cooperation and collaboration to mitigate and manage risks and disasters caused by climate change.

In a message of best wishes sent during the ‘Gharpuijhong Climate Conference’ being held in Mustang, Prime Minister Shah expressed his commitment to drawing global attention to finding solutions, emphasizing that mitigating and managing the impacts of climate change is a shared responsibility of the global community.

The message notes the Prime Minister’s commitment to drawing the global community’s attention—specifically at the 81st United Nations General Assembly—to the problems, damages, and potential solutions related to the climate change issues Nepal is facing.

Furthermore, Prime Minister Shah stated his intention to draw the attention of both national and international communities to the severe impacts climate change is having on Nepal’s Himalayan, hilly, and Terai regions.

Prime Minister Shah highlighted that rising global temperatures are causing problems such as the melting of mountains, the breaking off of ice masses, glacial outbursts, increased glacial river flows, the drying up of water sources, and unpredictable weather changes. These issues affect the entire nation, including the Himalayan region, and are beginning to impact local livelihoods, agriculture, and biodiversity.

Expressing happiness that the ‘Gharpuijhong Climate Conference’ is being held in Jomsom, Mustang—a Himalayan district—he emphasized the need for strong collaboration among the federal, provincial, and local governments to address the impacts of climate change.

The two-day conference, organized by Gharpuijhong Rural Municipality, was inaugurated today by Gita Chaudhary, the Minister for Agriculture, Forests, and Environment. The conference is being attended by the chiefs of most rural municipalities and mayors of municipalities from across the country, as well as the heads of District Coordination Committees.

The conference is viewed as highly significant, taking place against the backdrop of the devastating flood—triggered by an avalanche—that swept from the Bhote Koshi into the Trishuli River, causing irreparable loss of life and property, and amidst extensive preparations for Prime Minister Shah’s address to the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.