‘CPEC to be turned into model green belt initiative’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China Monday agreed to turn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) into a model green belt and road initiative to protect and preserve natural environment in the region.

It was decided during a meeting held here between Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam and a three-member delegation headed by China’s Ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong.

Various important issues came up in the meeting such as environmental sustainability, climate resilience, renewable energy, green economic recovery, air pollution, water conservation and disaster risk reduction.

Malik Amin Aslam informed the ambassador that the government had already launched an ambitious Protected Areas Initiative under the umbrella programme ‘Clean Green Pakistan’. “It aims to expand the country’s protected area from 13 percent to more than 15 percent by 2023 and create 5,000 green jobs across the country,” he said.

Sharing more details about the green initiatives taken by the government, he told the Chinese envoy that the climate change ministry had initiated several flagship programmes including the world’s largest Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, Clean Green Pakistan, Protected Areas Initiative, Plastic-Free Pakistan and Recharge Pakistan Initiative.

The Chinese ambassador said his government was fully committed to extending support to the green vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan and his remarkable green initiatives, including Green Stimulus and post-Covid-19 green recovery for restoring livelihood of the people affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

He also pointed out that Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision of green Pakistan was perfectly aligned to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vision of green China. “We as a Chinese government see a huge scope and opportunities of working jointly to promote the common green vision for enhanced environmental sustainability and climate resilience against adverse impacts of the climate change,” he said.