Imran Khan vows to make a shift towards “clean and green” Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said the Government of Pakistan was fully committed to playing a leadership role in addressing the issue of climate change and making a shift towards a “clean and green” Pakistan through a well-articulated climate change agenda consisting of a number of on-the-ground flagship initiatives.

The prime minister, in an article which is part of the ‘World Economic Forum’s Country Strategic Dialogue on Pakistan 2020’, titled “Leading by doing”, said climate change was undoubtedly, the most threatening issue of the time and an issue without a vaccine.

“There is no short-cut solution to enhanced, cooperative and coordinated global climate action. Pakistan stands ready and committed to not only play its role in furthering global efforts to combat this menace but also lead the way with real on-the-ground solutions,” he added.

The prime minister said climate change is one of the defining global challenges faced by our generation. It has far-reaching adverse economic, social and political impacts.

“The world is already witnessing unprecedented floods, severe droughts, increasing heat waves, spreading wildfires and fierce cyclonic activity. All of these pose a clear and present danger for humanity. While no country is immune from these impacts of climate change, most developing countries remain disproportionately affected by its negative impacts,” he observed.

Imran Khan said, “Pakistan is a case in point, as it lies at the geographic crossroads of melting glaciers, unpredictably shifting monsoons and enhanced disaster activity triggered by climate change.”

Despite Pakistan’s diminutive contribution to global green house gas emissions, it was the fifth most climate-impacted country in the world, as indicated by the German watch Global Climate Risk Index, 2020, he added.

The prime minister further said Pakistan was also actively pursuing innovative global financing for its ambitious climate agenda, through structuring “Debt for Nature” swaps or “Nature Bonds” based on the credible ongoing activities outlined above and the renegotiation of its burgeoning debt with countries supportive of a green revival.

“There is an urgent need for simultaneously raising ambition for climate action, while also building resilience and adapting to the inescapable impacts of climate change,” he stressed.

Subsequent to the successful achievement of planting a billion trees in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (2014-18), which enhanced the provincial forest cover by 6%, he said they were now implementing the “10 Billion Trees Tsunami” initiative which would restore and enhance over 1 million hectares of forest across the country.

The project, he said, was expected to deliver multiple dividends by creating green jobs, sequestering carbon as well as promoting ecosystem-based adaptation. ‘A truly win-win nature based solution,’ he added.

The prime minister said in addition, the “Protected Areas Initiative”, launched during the COVID-19 era, was enhancing the national coverage of protected areas from 12% to 15% of land area while preserving Pakistan’s unique and valuable biodiversity and had already increased the number of National Parks from 30 to 45 in just one year.