Amrai Z Khan
Lahore
WWF-Pakistan and the Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC), government of Pakistan have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote environmental conservation in Pakistan. The MoU will enable signatories to work on various initiatives including Clean and Green Pakistan Movement, Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, Recharge Pakistan and WWF’s New Deal for Nature.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Malik Amin Aslam, Advisor to Prime Minister of Pakistan for Climate Change. Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General, WWF-Pakistan and Irfan Tariq, Director General Environment, MoCC signed the MoU on the behalf of their respective organizations. The event was also attended by the senior officials from both organizations.
According to the Germanwatch’s Global Climate Risk Index, Pakistan is one of the top most countries affected by climate change. The country has been experiencing extreme weather events such as floods, heatwaves and cyclones over the past two decades. It also has the highest Deforestation rate in Asia. Forests are natural carbon sinks and play a significant role in reducing carbon footprint and curbing global warming.
Besides mitigating against the adverse impacts of climate change, forests also provide habitat to animals, livelihood to humans, prevent soil erosion and offer watershed protection. Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General, WWF-Pakistan said, “From air pollution, receding groundwater level to increasing impacts of climate change, Pakistan is facing myriad of environmental issues. This MoU with the MoCC will help us to address some of the critical environmental issues that the country is facing.” He added that the government will be a key partner in addressing the issues related to deforestation, dwindling water resources and plastic pollution.
