Lt Gen Omar Mahmood Hayat (R)
AS Pakistan faces the mounting pressures of climate change—from catastrophic floods to creeping droughts—our national response must evolve.
It is no longer enough to react to disasters. We must build resilience from the ground up. I propose a district-level climate adaptation and disaster preparedness strategy anchored in data, dignity and institutional strength—starting with the revitalization of our District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs).
We must begin by identifying the districts most exposed to climate hazards and natural disasters using geospatial tools and localized data. But exposure alone is insufficient. We must overlay this with socioeconomic vulnerability—poverty levels, infrastructural gaps and access to services—to reveal communities that are both climate-exposed and historically underserved.
This dual mapping approach ensures that our interventions are not only targeted, but JUST. Adaptation must be tailored to district-specific risks and community realities. Localized Adaptation Plan of Action (LAPA) should be developed through participatory processes that prioritize the voices of women, youth and marginalized groups.
These plans must reflect lived experience—not just technical forecasts. Some districts in Pakistan have already demonstrated the power of localized planning. We must scale this model nationwide, ensuring that adaptation is not a privilege of the few but a right of all.
At the heart of this strategy lies the District Disaster Management Authority. A vibrant DDMA is not merely a coordinating body—it is the district’s climate intelligence hub, operational command center and civic trust-builder.
Its responsibilities must include: • Translating national climate data into local action • Executing LAPAs with community input and transparency • Coordinating across departments to embed resilience in health, agriculture, infrastructure and education • Leading emergency preparedness, evacuation planning and rapid response • Managing a centralized database to track risks, responses and outcomes
Empowering the DDMAs could involve reconfiguring the District Civil Defence structure, retraining them as the executing arm of the DDMA. When empowered, the DDMA becomes a symbol of responsive governance—bridging the gap between policy and people.
A centralized climate database, integrated with each DDMA, is essential. It will provide consistent, real-time data to support LAPAs, track implementation and inform decision-making. This system must be accessible to planners, researchers and communities alike bridging the gap between information and action.
Pakistan’s climate and disaster resilience future must be built district by district, voice by voice. We have the tools, the talent, and the urgency. What we need now is resolve—and a commitment to empower our districts as engines of resilience. Let us move from reaction to readiness. Let us build a climate response that is not only effective—but just.
—The writer is Ex-Chairman, National Disaster Management Authority.
