Cabinet green-lights $25m project to replant Sindh’s degraded wetlands

The Sindh cabinet on Tuesday decided to invest $25 million (approximately Rs3.87 billion) under a public-private partnership to replant degraded wetlands across the province to provide a full spectrum of wetlands ecosystem for the benefit of the poverty-stricken coastal communities.

The cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah at the new secretariat, was attended by all provincial ministers and advisers, acting chief secretary Mohammad Waseem and other relevant officers, according to a handout issued by the government.

Blue carbon

Forest & Wildlife Minister Nasir Shah told the cabinet that blue carbon is stored and sequestered in costal ecosystems such as mangrove forests, sea grass meadows, inter-tidal salt marshes or wetlands.

He said that these valuable ecosystems hold vast carbon reservoirs, and they sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide through primary production and then deposit it in their sediment. Blue carbon is found in the soils or sediments beneath the vegetation, he added.

The minister said that if the degraded wetlands of the province were to properly replanted, they have the potential to provide a full spectrum of wetlands ecosystem for the benefit of the poverty-stricken coastal communities.

Forest Secretary Rahim Soomro said that public-private partnership is the only way forwards for rehabilitating and restoring these vast chunks of degraded wetlands in the Indus Delta area. At this the chief executive said that budgetary and techno-managerial constraints in replanting these areas can be addressed through partnering with the private sector. He directed the forest department to start the project through public-private partnership.

The forest minister said that a private firm has already expressed interest in the project, adding that the company has committed to developing and sustainably managing the wetlands in recognition of their social, economic and ecological significance, including carbon sequestration and storage.

He said the private firm has proposed a Sindh Blue Carbon Initiative to be implemented over 0.2 million to 0.25 million hectares of the Indus Delta land in the Thatta, Sujawal and Badin districts.

The minister said that the proposed project period is for 60 years, which may be extendable up to 100 years, adding that the project will cost around $25 million.

Government jobs

The cabinet decided to invite details from every department of the provincial government about job vacancies available with them so they can be filled through the recruitment process later on.

All departments of the provincial government have been asked to submit those details by January 15 to the CM House. The details of the job vacancies will be provided in view of the facilities of public service, such as government schools and hospitals, being run by these departments.

Trophy hunting

The meeting approved the provincial trophy hunting programme. In trophy hunting, animals sought as trophies have large body parts such as horns, antlers or tusks. Consequently, trophies so counted are invariably old males, and the animals most frequently considered as trophy species are the ungulates.

The forest minister said that trophy hunting is not carried out in protected areas such as national parks and wildlife sanctuaries but only on game reserves, private lands and state lands.

The CM said that it is not an attempt to generate revenue but to manage, conserve and protect wildlife and their habitats.

The cabinet was informed that in the early 1990s community-based trophy hunting started in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, attracting a large number of international hunters to Pakistan.

It was pointed out that in the non-protected areas, the ibex population has been counted at 797 in different areas, including Surjan/Duban, Sumbak Game Reserve, Eri Game, Hothiyano, Pachran and Uth Palan.

The forest minister said that five urials have been allowed for trophy hunting at a fee of $14,000 (approximately Rs2.17 million) each only for foreigners, and 20 Sindh ibex: 15 by foreigners at a fee of $5,600 (approximately Rs867,440) each and five by Pakistanis at a fee of Rs300,000 each.

Jetties regularisation

Fisheries Minister Abdul Bari Pitafi said that there are 33 illegal jetties: 12 in Ibrahim Hyderi, 10 in the Balochistan coastal belt, six in Thatta, Badin, Sakro and Gharo, and five in Mauripur. These jetties are being managed by influential people, who are charging boats between Rs100 and Rs5,000, and causing loss of up to Rs5 billion to the government.

The CM directed the fisheries department to make the necessary arrangements for the installation of the vessel monitoring system in phases, saying that the necessary amendment has been made to regularise the illegally developed jetties so that they can be managed by the government instead of unofficial people.

PTDC assets

The cabinet observed that after the passage of the 18th constitutional amendment, the assets of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) should have been devolved automatically to the provinces.

The PTDC has an eight-kanal motel at the Hawkesbay in a dilapidated condition, 32 acres in Sukkur, nine kanals in Hyderabad, a tourism facilitation centre in Karachi, a motel in Mohenjo-Daro, a tourism information centre in Thatta and six kanals in Banbhore.

The meeting decided to write to the federal government to transfer these assets, saying that in the meantime, the maintenance of these assets will be the responsibility of the provincial government.

Safety rules

Labour Minister Saeed Ghani presented the draft of the Sindh Occupational Safety & Health Rules 2019 framed under the 2018 Act of the same name. The rules have 26 sections, in which workers, labourers and agricultural workers have been included.

Employers have been bound to provide a neat and clean environment at their respective establishments and to adopting safety and security measures, including lights, ventilation, temperature maintenance, and noise and dust control. The cabinet approved the rules and directed the labour department to implement them in letter and spirit.

Fees exemption

The labour minister requested the cabinet to exempt all the shops and other commercial establishments from the registration fee under the ease of doing business reforms.

The meeting discussed and decided to exempt all the shops and such other commercial establishments from the registration fee all across Sindh. However, the shops will have to get themselves registered for free through the business portal.

Blood banks

The provincial health department informed the cabinet that the Regional Blood Centre in Jamshoro is being operated by the Indus Hospital with seven attached blood banks.

The Indus Hospital performed a gap analysis, which found that the total requirement of all the attached hospital-based blood banks was 70,000 bags, but a quantity of 20,000 blood bags was mentioned in the contract.

The meeting was told that additional arrangements would cause an impact of Rs8.2 billion in the next 10 years, following which the cabinet approved the proposal and gave the go-ahead to the Indus Hospital.