On October 21, 2022, the Supreme Court of Pakistan modified Sindh High Court orders that placed judicial officers in charge of citizens' committees overseeing relief after the 2022 floods. The Court held that judicial management of the committees crossed into executive functions under the National Disaster Management Act, 2010. It preserved a monitoring role for reconstituted committees, required representation of vulnerable groups and continued reporting by disaster-management authorities.

In an additional note expressly joined by the other members of the bench, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah connected the floods to climate change, cited attribution research finding that five-day maximum rainfall over Sindh and Balochistan was 75% more intense in a world warmed by 1.2 degrees Celsius, and reviewed the scale of flood damage and reconstruction needs. The Court stated that protection of the rights to life and dignity requires a climate-resilient adaptation plan, including a mechanism for the use of loss-and-damage finance, and called for the implementation of Pakistan's climate-governance framework.

Province of Sindh v. Sartaj Hyder et al.

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Province of Sindh v. Sartaj Hyder et al. - decision

Filed

Pakistan

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Justice is the ethical and political framework that addresses fairness, including issues of responsibility, rights, and structural inequity.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets

Financial actors and resources that are primarily directed towards climate change mitigation, adaptation and compensation.

Dedicated pool of financial resources for climate-related projects.

Conditions that enhance the feasibility of adaptation options. Enabling conditions include finance, technological innovation, strengthening policy instruments, institutional capacity, multi-level governance and changes in human behaviour and lifestyles.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Province of Sindh v. Sartaj Hyder et al. - decision

Risk

Impacted group

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance