Strengthening of change impact study centre stressed

Islamabad

Federal Minister for Climate Change Zahid Hamid on Tuesday praised the Global Change Impact Study Centre for ‘doing a job of great importance’ and said it should be strengthened so that it could play a role of leading research institution at regional level.

“The centre should develop strategic vision to fully benefit people of Pakistan. The recruitments should be made according to strategic vision,” he told a meeting held here under his chairmanship to discuss the strengthening of GCISC.

The minister appreciated the research work done by the GCISC and stressed on making it more active.

Dr Tariq Banuri Professor at the University of Utah and member of board of governance of GSISC also gave his valuable suggestions for strengthening GCISC. He suggested that GCISC can commission other institutions, doing field research to conduct research for GCISC. The Ministry of Climate Change should take pro-active approach with Higher Education Commission to start graduate programme in field of Climate change.

Goheer of GCISC gave presentations on the working of GCISC. The Secretary Ministry of Climate Change Syed Ahmed Abu Akif, Inspector General Forests Syed Mehmood Nasir, DG(Environment) Irfan Tariq, JS (Admn) Muhammad Farooq and scientific officers from GCISC
were also present in the meeting.

Being cognizant of the fact that climate change is a stark reality and no more a fiction and Pakistan cannot remain secluded from the adverse impacts of this global concern, Global Change Impact Studies Centre (GCISC) was established as a dedicated research centre to address climate change issues in 2002 as a PSDP Project. Consequently, GCISC was granted the status of a regular national entity as a body corporate by passage of “GCISC Act 2013”.