UN chief raises international alarm over melting of Himalayan glaciers in Nepal News
glorioushimalaya / Pixabay
UN chief raises international alarm over melting of Himalayan glaciers in Nepal

UN Secretary-General António Guterres sent a video message to the Nepalese government on Friday, warning that the Himalayan glaciers are rapidly melting and urging immediate action.

Guterres addressed the issue that despite Nepal producing a negligible amount of emissions in comparison to other countries, they are feeling the effects of the increased temperatures. Nepal has seen an increase in extreme weather events such as droughts, forest fires, water scarcity, floods, and glacial lake outbursts. In his speech, Guterres highlighted the fact that Nepal has lost nearly a third of its glacial ice in the past 30 years and that its glaciers are melting 65 percent faster in this decade than in the previous ten years.

Guterres also reaffirmed the commitments to the 1.5-degree limit and the 1.3 trillion-dollar climate finance goal agreed to at the 2024 UN Climate Change Conference (COP29). At COP29, Guterres referred to the finance goal as “an insurance policy for humanity” and as a way to safeguard billions of lives and increase employment, economic growth, and affordable, cleaner energy for everyone.

The message was sent for the start of Nepal’s Sagarmatha Sambaad, or “Everest Dialogue,” a forum started by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to bring attention to the Himalayas, which are thought to be crucial for safeguarding the Earth against global climate change. The goal of the forum is to “foster sincere discussions, mutual knowledge exchange and collective action under the symbolic name of the world’s highest peak, Sagarmatha.” Ahead of the Sagarmatha Sambaad, children and youth submitted a formal declaration to government officials that calls for urgent climate action to protect their rights as “legitimate climate actors and rights-holders.”

Gutteres visited Nepal in 2023, where he originally emphasized the importance of reduced fossil fuel emissions for the sake of protecting the country. Being wedged between two major producers of fossil fuels, China and India, Nepal is in a precarious position where it feels the effects of this pollution greatly.

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