Pakistan’s Farmers on the Frontline: Climate Change Fuels Floods, Debt, and Despair
Solaxy Group – In Pakistan, farming has always been a gamble with nature. But in 2025, that gamble has turned into a relentless battle for survival. What was once the seasonal blessing of the monsoon rains has now become a recurring disaster, leaving devastation in its wake.
Since late June, heavy monsoon downpours and flash floods have killed more than 800 people, destroyed over 7,200 homes, and swept away more than 5,500 livestock. Crops across Sindh, Punjab, and Balochistan have been submerged, forcing families deeper into debt and despair.
For farmers like Iqbal Solangi of Karachi, the losses are crushing. “When my house and land were flooded, I thought I would never farm again,” he said. “But farming is the only way we know to live. Each year we rebuild, and each year the floods return.”
One of the World’s Most Climate-Vulnerable Nations
Pakistan contributes less than 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet it ranks among the top 10 most climate-vulnerable countries. The mismatch is striking: the nation suffers some of the worst impacts of global warming while playing almost no role in causing it.
- The 2022 floods submerged a third of the country, killed 1,700 people, and caused more than $14 billion in damages.
- A heatwave in 2024 killed nearly 600 people, even as fresh floods displaced thousands more.
- The Climate Risk Index 2025 placed Pakistan as the most affected country based on recent data.
Scientists warn that without large-scale adaptation, future losses will escalate as climate extremes intensify.
Agriculture Under Siege
Agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, contributing 24% of GDP and employing more than 37% of the labor force. But for millions of farmers, the land is no longer reliable.
In Sindh province, rice paddies have been destroyed by repeated flooding. In Balochistan, farmers face drought one year and floods the next. “Farming now is like gambling with nature,” said Muhammad Hashim, a farmer in Balochistan. “One season we lose everything to drought, the next to floods. It is a cycle of misery.”
Figures from the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 show major crops such as wheat and cotton contracted by 13.5%, dragging down overall GDP growth. Farmers are losing their harvests and their hope.
The Debt Trap
For rural households, climate disasters have created a cycle of rebuilding, borrowing, and breaking down again. When crops are washed away, families are forced to take loans at high interest. When the next flood strikes, they are left with nothing but debt.
The 2022 floods displaced more than eight million people, many of them smallholder farmers who abandoned their land and migrated to cities. But urban migration has not solved their problems. Instead, it has left millions unemployed or underpaid, with no land to return to.
“Every time we rebuild, everything is destroyed again,” said a farmer in Mirpur Khas. “Now even debt cannot save us. It only makes us poorer.”
Glacier Melt: A Hidden Threat
While floods and drought dominate headlines, another looming crisis threatens Pakistan’s future: the melting of its 13,000 glaciers. These glaciers feed the Indus River system, the lifeline of Pakistan’s agriculture.
Scientists warn that accelerated melting could destabilize water supplies, leading to both devastating floods and long-term water scarcity. Infrastructure and farmland are at risk, and millions of farmers could be displaced.
Earlier this year, Pakistan’s climate minister Musadiq Malik warned that the collapse of glacier systems would have “catastrophic consequences” for the nation’s agricultural economy.
A Global Warning
Pakistan’s climate crisis is not just a national story — it is a global signal. The destruction of crops in South Asia threatens food security across the region and beyond. Rising migration from rural areas adds political and economic instability.
International donors pledged billions after the 2022 floods, but disbursement has been slow. Many villages still lack resilient infrastructure, while adaptation projects remain underfunded.
“If Pakistan’s agricultural backbone collapses, the ripple effects will not stop at our borders,” said one Islamabad-based economist. “Food prices, migration, and instability will spread far beyond South Asia.”
What Needs to Happen Next
Experts say urgent action is required at both the national and global level:
- Scale up climate finance – Wealthy nations must deliver funding for adaptation and resilience.
- Modernize agriculture – Introduce drought-resistant seeds, improve irrigation, and build storage facilities.
- Disaster preparedness – Strengthen embankments, improve early warning systems, and relocate vulnerable communities.
- Regional cooperation – Share data and manage cross-border rivers in the Indus Basin to reduce water conflicts.
Without these measures, Pakistan’s agriculture could collapse further, leaving millions without livelihoods.
Lives on the Edge
For Basharat Jamal, a farmer in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the crisis is deeply personal. Once proud of his fertile land, he now supplements his income with a small shop. Droughts and floods have left him with almost nothing to harvest.
“Our land is dying,” he said quietly. “If this continues, farming will no longer exist for people like us.”
The story of Pakistan’s farmers is the story of climate change in real time — not a distant future threat, but today’s reality. With COP30 approaching, the world must reckon with the truth: if vulnerable nations like Pakistan cannot adapt and survive, the global community will face the consequences.
