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KATHMANDU, Aug 8: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said Nepal is bearing the brunt of climate change despite having contributed almost nothing to global carbon emissions. Speaking at a side event during the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries in Awaza, Turkmenistan, he said Nepal is among the hardest hit, with glacial melting posing a serious and ongoing threat.

Oli said that as a Himalayan country, Nepal faces immense challenges from fast-melting glaciers. “The Himalayas are our source of water, life, and livelihood, and they define our national identity. But they are disappearing,” he warned. He also pointed out that the Himalayas and oceans are connected, as they recharge each other, and serve as cooling systems for the Earth.

He highlighted that climate change, especially glacial melt, threatens Nepal’s development, security, and survival. Recalling the July 8 glacial lake outburst flood in Rasuwa, which swept away a bridge linking Nepal and China and killed around 20 people, Oli warned that such disasters are becoming more frequent and could intensify.

He said Nepal’s agriculture, hydropower, tourism, and biodiversity are all increasingly at risk. “These impacts don’t stop at our borders. What happens in our mountains affects entire regions and future generations,” he said. Citing current emission trends, he noted that the Himalayas could lose up to two-thirds of their glacier volume by the century’s end.

Oli emphasized that rivers like the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Indus, and Mekong, which originate in the Himalayas, support billions of lives. If glaciers continue to shrink, water sources will dry up, threatening food and energy security.

He said the loss of glaciers is not just environmental but a loss of life, heritage, and hope. “The cry of the glaciers is loud and urgent. It demands justice, not just action,” he said.

Oli urged global cooperation to slow glacial melting and pledged Nepal’s commitment to working with the international community to push for climate justice.

People’s News Monitoring Service