BUDGET 2026-27: Situationer: Building resilience or just ticking climate boxes?

Besides measures that discourage the adoption of solar energy and electric vehicles, the government continues to invest in mega-hydro projects despite adverse ecological impacts; proposes ‘false solutions’ such as carbon capture instead of reducing reliance on fossil fuels; and leaves the adaptation agenda by the wayside despite recurring floods. The upcoming budget, according to officials from the climate change ministry, features at least eight proposed projects focused on climate resilience, afforestation, green growth, biodiversity conservation, and environmental monitoring under the Public Sector Development Programme — with a total allocation of Rs2.78 billion. However, experts have repeatedly criticised the government’s seemingly “anti-climate policies”, particularly attempts to tax renewable energy, which they believe will undermine the climate-smart policy direction spurred by recent IMF and World Bank programs. The IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) requires Pakistan to revise its public investment framework so that at least 30 per cent of the project appraisal weighting for infrastructure projects reflects climate change adaptation and mitigation criteria. In the outgoing fiscal year, at least Rs86bn worth of PSDP projects were tagged as ‘climate adaptation’, and measures worth over Rs600bn classified as ‘climate mitigation’. “This year, these numbers will increase. However, the true essence of tagging must be followed — it should be inclusive, not just a box-ticking activity,” said SDPI Research Fell