Foreign missions carry out Diplomatic Enclave clean-up exercise

Islamabad: Seven foreign missions jointly launched an initiative for a ‘cleaner and greener Islamabad’ by carrying out a clean-up exercise in the Diplomatic Enclave here on Wednesday morning.

Under DiploGreen for which the embassies and high commissions of Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, and the United States teamed up, members of the diplomatic community, government functionaries, representatives of the Foreign Office and Islamabad’s municipal corporation, environmentalists, civil society activists, businesspersons, and journalists collected plastic bags and wrappers, tin cans, paper waste, glass bottles and tree branches from the roadsides between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. in sacks before disposing them of in designated receptacles.

Wearing white T-shirts and caps with DiploGreen logo and holding bamboo sticks, they pledged not to use single-use plastics, take recycling steps, reduce energy and water usage, and create public awareness of environmental protection.

There followed a function at the Canadian High Commission, where adviser to the prime minister on climate Malik Amin Aslam highlighted the government’s initiatives for providing the people with a cleaner and healthier environment to live in.

He said the government was alarmed at the annual use of 55 billion plastic bags in the country, so a ban was slapped on such bags in Islamabad lately to protect the environment from their harms.

“Under the electric vehicle policy, 30 percent of vehicles in the country will be shifted to cleaner energy by 2030. Not only will the initiative reduce environmental pollution but it will curtail oil imports and increase business opportunities in the country as well,” he said.

Amin Aslam said the Clean Green Index programme would be launched in September to encourage competition among 20 major cities on maintaining the level of cleanliness.

Amin Aslam was all praise for foreign missions over the launch of DiploGreen and declaring the move a significant step towards the creation of a healthier environment.

Canadian High Commissioner Wendy Gilmour, who led the DiploGreen drive, said the diplomatic community had joined hands to support the government on the plastic ban and raise public awareness of environmental issues, which were a matter of concern for them as well.

She said each of the seven missions under DiploGreen was committed to taking steps for being more energy-efficient.

“The Embassy of France has already banned single-use plastic utensils in its events, while the Embassy of Germany has begun waste segregation. We have formed the Environmental Stewardship Committee at our high commission to suggest ‘green practices’ for staff members, including recycling programme and waste reduction to ensure environmental sustainability,” she said.

The high commissioner said foreign missions would continue working for a healthier environment. “We all are impacted by environmental issues, so it is imperative for us all to strive across geographic and political boundaries to protect our natural surroundings,” she concluded. Mayor of Islamabad Sheikh Ansar Aziz and ambassadors of Japan, the Netherlands, United Arab Emirates and Morocco also attended the event.