‘Carbon pricing to help increase investment in green energy’

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Mushahidullah Khan said putting a price on carbon emissions could help increase investments in green energy and reduce the carbon footprint.

The federal minister was addressing a workshop on carbon pricing as chief guest, a government statement said on Thursday. “Pakistan is cautiously evaluating options to introduce this instrument in a way that our economic pace is not compromised.”

Mushahidullah Khan said the Ministry of Climate Change was collaborating with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to evaluate the application of a carbon pricing instrument. The government planned on an instrument “which can best fit with the national context and priorities while providing benefits in terms of mitigation action and for attracting international support for climate action,” he added.

He highlighted that Pakistan has less than one percent share in global carbon emissions, but this share was expected to increase considerably as the country climbs over the development ladder and makes efforts to achieve energy security.

UNFCCC representative Taimoor appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Climate Change in implementing the Paris agreement.

Separately, on the conclusion of the three-day conference ‘Science Policy on Climate Change’, the senator said, “Climate Change is not a short-term disease. It will not disappear after a few months or years. It is a chronic condition.”

The statement said the Ministry of Climate Change has taken a number of actions in this regard, including the passing of the Pakistan Climate Change Act 2017.

“We hope that the first meeting of the National Climate Change Authority will be held in a month,” the minister said, and added the ministry was keen to operationalise the act.

Mushahidullah Khan highlighted other much needed policies, including the New Forest Policy, Prime Minister Green Pakistan Program, and Declaration of Astola Island first Marine Protected Area of Pakistan. “I have also directed the Wildlife Department of Ministry of Climate Change to formulate the first Wildlife Policy of Pakistan,” he said.

Deputy Chairman Planning Commission also addressed the conference and said Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has instructed to take solid steps to address climate change. Pakistan should also work on climate change with China in partnership, he added.

The conference was organised by Global Change Impact Studies Centre with the support of several important partners, including the Higher Education Commission, Sustainable Development Policy Institute, National Disaster Management Authority, Pakistan Meteorological Department, University of Utah, and the US-Pakistan Centre for Advanced Studies in Water.

It was attended by more than 700 delegates representing international and national research organisations, academia, government, media, law, parliamentarians and civil society.