CLIMATE FINANCE IN PAKISTAN: ACCESS, UTILIZATION, AND GOVERNANCE CHALLENGES

Pakistan is among the most climate-vulnerable countries globally, facingrecurrent floods, droughts, heatwaves, and glacial melt despite contributingminimally to global greenhouse gas emissions. Climate finance is thereforecritical for supporting adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building. Thisstudy examines the structure, access mechanisms, utilization patterns, andgovernance challenges of climate finance in Pakistan using a qualitative policyanalysis approach based on national frameworks, multilateral fund data, andinstitutional reports. The findings reveal a substantial gap between climatefinance needs and actual inflows, with funding remaining limited, projectbased, and heavily donor-dependent. Access to international climate funds isconstrained by accreditation requirements, fiduciary standards, and limitedtechnical capacity. Governance fragmentation, weak inter-ministerialcoordination, uneven provincial participation, and inadequate monitoringmechanisms further undermine effective utilization. Additionally, adaptationfinance remains insufficient relative to Pakistan’s vulnerability profile. Thestudy concludes that Pakistan’s climate finance challenges are systemic andrequire institutional reform, improved direct access to multilateral funds,stronger federal–provincial coordination, enhanced transparency, and greatermobilization of domestic and private sector resources to support resilient andsustainable development.