PM Shah addresses UNGA; proposes tri-national ‘Himalayan climate-resilience mechanism’

Kathmandu / Sept 25: Prime Minister Balendra Shah has proposed the establishment of a ‘Himalayan Climate Resilience Mechanism’ among Nepal, India and China.

During his address to the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly today, he argued that the Hindu Kush Himalayan region is linked to the water, ecosystems, agriculture, and livelihoods of about two billion people, and said the region is an important part of Earth’s life system.

He stated that through the proposed mechanism, satellite data and expertise would be shared, at-risk glaciers would be monitored, a joint early warning system would be strengthened, and cross-border assistance would be coordinated during disasters.

Prime Minister Shah emphasized that the Himalayas should be turned into a laboratory for international cooperation rather than just a boundary of fragmented information.

Highlighting that Nepal is playing a global role beyond its ecological contribution, he informed that forests have been restored in nearly half of Nepal’s land area.

The Prime Minister also shared that hydropower development is progressing to meet the need for clean energy, the use of electric vehicles is increasing, and climate adaptation is being strengthened at the local level.

Prime Minister Shah also expressed Nepal’s commitment to making even more preparations to tackle the increasing disasters.

He said the flood disaster that devastatingly struck Nepal’s Himalayan region a month ago is not just a tragedy limited to Nepal but a warning for the world.

Shah called for climate justice to go beyond commitments and statements in international documents. He said people in vulnerable countries should be able to build their future instead of constantly rebuilding what disasters destroy.

“The Himalayas are not peripheral to the planet. They are part of the planet’s life-support system,” he said, underscoring the global importance of protecting the Himalayan region.

Shah also urged the international community to respond more quickly to climate-related disasters, saying countries facing emergencies should not be burdened with lengthy procedures before receiving assistance.

“When the house is burning, we do not ask the family to complete fifty forms. We act,” he said.

He also drew attention to the imbalance between global resources devoted to war and those available for food and livelihoods. “We have built a world with flawless logistics for war and broken logistics for food,” Shah said.

Calling for a comprehensive approach to climate disasters, he said the international response should include “relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction” as well as “responsibility, reparation and resilience.”

Shah proposed making the Himalayas a laboratory of international cooperation rather than a region where information and responses remain fragmented.

“Let the Himalayas become a laboratory of international cooperation, rather than a frontier of fragmented information,” he said.

He also linked the challenges faced by vulnerable countries to both climate change and global conflicts, saying Nepal had been “hit by the climate we did not warm, and hit again by the wars we did not start.”

Shah called for greater access to resources and technology for affected communities, particularly farmers. He questioned how a world capable of delivering weapons anywhere within 72 hours could fail to provide farmers with the means to sustain a decent livelihood.

Shah’s address placed climate change, climate justice and the protection of the Himalayas at the heart of Nepal’s message at the UN General Assembly.