World Bank delegation calls on Advisor to PM on Climate Change
Pakistan amongst those top seven countries which were badly affected with climate changes
ISLAMABAD (APP) – Advisor to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam Khan on Tuesday apprised a World Bank delegation that environment was the foremost priority agenda of government and it was rigorously pursuing it since the day one.
“We have already initiated ten billion tsunami tree plantation drive a month ago and now we have launched a clean green Pakistan initiative to bring behavioural changes amongst the people in accordance with the vision of prime minister,” he told the delegation led by Country Director Patchamuthu Illangovan.
The delegates – comprising Amena Raja Operations Officer, Lixin Gu, Programme Leader, Kamran Akbar, Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist, and Ahsan Tehsin, Distaster Risk Management Specialist – discussed the areas of mutual interest including cooperation in different plans to deal with climate change hazards.
The delegates said that quality of life in a number of areas in South Asia including Pakistan was dropping due to harsh temperature and other climate changes and the World Bank was especially focusing to mitigate those growing environmental issues.
They informed the adviser that the World Bank was running a Green Development Programme in collaboration with Punjab government to deal with pollution issues. The delegates expressed their willingness to cooperate with the ministry of climate change to deal with the solid waste management, agriculture and water related issues.
Amin said unfortunately, Pakistan was amongst those top seven countries which were badly affected with climate changes. “Our agriculture sector is facing bad effects of these climate changes too. Growing seasons have been shifted.”
He said said that the clean green Pakistan initiative had a special focus on five major areas which included plantation, solid waste management, liquid waste management, availability of clean drinking water as 42% people of Pakistanis did not have access to Clean water and hygiene.
The adviser said that water wastage was another gigantic problem and the government had no proper strategy to store flood waters, but the government in accordance with the vision of PM Clean Green Pakistan would certainly channelize flood water and aptly use wet lands for that purpose. Our biggest dilemma is that we do have water but not adequately stored or properly managed.
Under ‘Recharge Pakistan’ project Malik Amin Aslam Khan said that unfortunately, the previous governments had paid no heed towards better hygiene. “Our 43% population does not have access to toilets. We have to create open defecation free environment by encouraging people to build toilets.”
Malik Amin Aslam Khan said that the country’s north glaciers were melting and posing serious threats therefore “we will introduce an early warning system to avoid disasters.” The government is committed to provide clean and green Pakistan to our next generations as envisioned by the Prime Minister.
