ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States of America have pledged to jointly work and boost bilateral cooperation for enhanced global climate action to protect world environmental ecosystems and the life on earth they feed.
Climate Change Ministry media spokesperson Muhammad Saleem told this scribe that Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam and Former Presidential candidate and US Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry made such pledge during their meeting in the British capital’s Kew Gardens on the heels of the pre-COP meeting in the run-up to the annual global climate conference set for November this year in Glasgow.
“Both sides pondered over at length diverse matters of bilateral cooperation and opportunities for collaboration between US and Pakistani governments in the fields of post-Covid-19 green economic recovery by enhancing investment in nature-based solutions and green job creations, environmental sustainability, climate change, sustainable forest management, air pollution and water conservation and protection and disaster risk reduction”, according to the ministry official.
Both Pakistan and the United States also agreed on forming a joint working group to address challenges related to Climate Change. The efforts of Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s bold action on halting coal-powered plants as well as Pakistan’s leadership on Nature-Based Solutions, including the massive Ten Billion Tree Tsunami, the campaign was appreciated by Senator Kerry during the meeting. He also assured Pakistan of full support from the United States on climate change including providing access to the best available technologies in renewable energy transition, technical support on climate-smart agriculture and availability of climate finance.
The SAPM thanked the United States government for reigniting their leadership role on Climate Change, under the Biden administration, and assured that Pakistan believes in a low carbon development pathway and on nature-based solutions to Climate Change. Pakistan is finalizing its enhanced NDCs to be presented at COP26 and reaffirmed that the world needs to collectively confront the largest challenge humanity has ever faced.
Meanwhile, while sharing details of the present government’s green and clean Pakistan initiatives, Malik Amin Aslam told John Kerry that the incumbent government of Prime Minister Imran Khan has launched various flagship programmes and projects including the world’s largest afforestation programme of 10 Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, Clean Green Pakistan Programme, Protected Areas Initiative, Plastic-Free Pakistan Initiative, Recharge Pakistan Initiative as a part of the country’s efforts to achieve environmental sustainability and climate resilience through conservation and protection of the environment, forests and wildlife, wherein community and youth engagements are being assigned the heightened priority.
