A roadmap to deliver a green, inclusive and resilient recovery in South Asia

High in the Hindu Kush Himalayas of northern Pakistan, the residents of Hassanabad keep a watch on a wall of black ice almost 700 feet high that perches menacingly above their tiny village. The 15-kilometer long Shishper glacier, which is melting at an alarming rate and advancing by four meters a day, presents a constant threat of flash floods.

Last year, people in the village noticed that the stream near their homes was rising fast.  Not long after, a torrent of glacial melt water descended upon Hassanabad, submerging a local power plant, farms, orchards and damaging many homes. The residents of Hassanabad had enough time to flee the deluge. But others in the region have not been so lucky.

More than half of all South Asians, or 750 million people in eight countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka — have been affected by one or more climate-related disasters in the last two decades.

South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate shocks.  The people of South Asia are living through a “new climate normal”, where intensifying heat waves, cyclones, droughts, and floods are testing the limits of governments, businesses, and citizens to adapt, and these challenges are only likely to get worse.

More than half of all South Asians, or 750 million people in eight countries have been affected by one or more climate-related disasters in the last two decades.

South Asian countries are leading the way towards a growth and development model that is green, resilient, and inclusive. Bangladesh is a model for the world in terms of coastal resilience and emergency preparedness. In a short period of time India now has the fifth largest installed solar power capacity in the world.

South Asia still has an unfinished development agenda and has legitimate expectations of growing to middle income status. A pivot to integrating climate change more deeply into economic growth and poverty reduction strategies holds great promise for countries in the region. Now, more than ever, urgent climate action in South Asia is needed to pave the way for a resilient recovery and medium-term growth. 

Emerging “green” sectors like battery technology, e-mobility, climate-friendly housing, and industrial decarbonization offer countries a new paradigm to generate growth and create sustainable jobs.  South Asia is undergoing development transitions across different sectors — energy, urban, agriculture, transport, and water.  The success with which the countries can integrate climate considerations into these transitions will determine the region’s ability to lift millions from the threat of poverty and vulnerability and help the world secure the climate transition.

Through the Roadmap to implement the World Bank Group CCAP 2.0 in the South Asia Region, we will ramp up our support for mitigation and adaptation efforts in the region over the next five years. It is a blueprint for implementing the new World Bank Group Climate Change Action Plan 2.0. The Roadmap offers concrete steps to help the region accelerate transitions in three key areas that will be critical to building resilience to the rapidly warming climate in the region and reducing global emissions.

So what does this mean?

First, the Bank Group will help scale up climate-smart food system strategies and investments and deepen its support to increase farm productivity and lower emissions while also conserving water and energy.

Second, decarbonizing the energy sector -- while ensuring universal access to electricity -- is critical to avoid the greatest impacts from climate change. The Roadmap is designed to help countries across South Asia transition to a zero-carbon energy system that not only drive growth but are equitable and just.

Key economies in South Asia are already leading the world in scaling up renewable energy transitions . With WBG support, Pakistan’s Super Six wind power project will help deliver cleaner, cheaper power to meet the country’s critical demand for energy and reduce reliance on expensive imported fossil fuels. In India, one of the country’s flagship solar projects, the giant Rewa solar park and decentralized solar rooftop, is delivering energy and transport transitions by powering the New Delhi metro rail system. 

Third, supporting the growth of low-carbon and climate-resilient urbanization. Cities are not just at the forefront of climate impacts but have ample opportunities to combat climate change  through green buildings, sustainable transport, and clean energy. South Asia, the second-fastest urbanizing region of the world, will add nearly 600 million people to urban areas in the next thirty years.  The World Bank Group will support South Asian cities that are designed and built for people not cars, that use urban density and form in a smart manner, that build in climate resilience, and are reliant on a well-functioning, clean integrated public transport system.

In Sri Lanka, where urban flooding decimated the capital city of Colombo in 2010, the Government urban planners together with the World Bank team worked together to safeguard the city’s remaining natural wetlands, that is now a key pillar of the city’s major flood prevention program and won Colombo the Ramsar Wetland City accreditation.

South Asia, the second-fastest urbanizing region of the world, will add nearly 600 million people to urban areas in the next thirty years. 

Delivering on this commitment will also require systemic resilience including climate-adapted social protection systems and translating climate strategies into investment planning.  It will also require a robust public and private financial system that can fund the transition away from carbon emitting sectors and to finance resilience.  That means working with our partners across the region to green the financial sector, improve the efficiency of public expenditure, and use scarce public resources to leverage private finance. 

By focusing on green, resilient, and inclusive development – what we call the GRID approach -- South Asia is well positioned to capture the opportunities that come from managing climate risk effectively. 

We invite policy makers, the private sector, development partners and civil society stakeholders to work with us as we seek to support a low-carbon, climate resilient economy, saving millions of lives from the severe impacts of climate change. Let’s embrace this lifetime opportunity to put South Asia on a more equitable, prosperous, and cleaner path.