‘Green CPEC Alliance’ launched for eco-friendly CPEC

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Senate’s Defence Committee and Chairman Pakistan-China Institute Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed pressed upon the urgency of the Climate Change situation in the world by arguing to prioritize the need for a green Pakistan, including redefining the notion of national security from a military-centric approach to human security, cantering on Climate Change, population planning, food security and water scarcity.

Pakistan-China Institute (PCI), in collaboration with Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), hosted the launch event and the inception meeting of the first-of-its-kind “Green China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Alliance”.

The conference was attended by over 40 participants and featured 6 panellists including Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Chairman Pakistan-China Institute, Acting Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China Ms Pang Chunxue, Zhang Jun, CEO, China Three Gorges (CTG) Corporation, Muhammad Aurangzeb, CEO, Habib Bank Limited (HBL), Senator Seemin Ezdi, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Climate Change, Dr Abid Suleri, Executive Director, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI). The event was moderated by Mustafa Hyder Sayed, Executive Director Pakistan-China Institute.

The goal of the establishment of the Green CPEC Alliance with members from both countries’ governments, investors, as well as civil society, and environmental experts, is to support and accelerate this transition within Pakistan and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The Alliance aims to green and decarbonize CPEC by supporting a re-direction of Chinese infrastructure investments away from emission-intensive investments and towards green infrastructure projects, e.g., from coal to renewable energy, like wind, solar and hydropower.

Chairman Pakistan-China Institute Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed in his welcome remarks expressed great pleasure in being part of the inception and thanked the presence of all esteemed guests. Mushahid reckoned it integral to press upon the urgency of the Climate Change situation in the world, by arguing to prioritize the need for a green Pakistan, including redefining the notion of national security from a military-centric approach to Human Security, cantering on Climate Change, population planning, food security and water scarcity. He also shared his experiences from the COP 26 meeting in Glasgow, acknowledging that some work was being done on the international level but not much progress was made on Green Finance. He called for accelerating the efforts to mitigate the effects of Climate Change at the community level in Pakistan, referring to his initiatives to launch the first public hearings on the environment and climate change in the Parliament.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed was followed by the Acting Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Pakistan Ms Pang Chunxue who expressed her delight to be part of the event.

Her remarks revolved around the efforts of China to mitigate global Climate Change threats and she emphasized Chinese initiatives of ensuring that all Chinese investments that are part of the Belt and Road Initiative are made green. She talked about the various hydropower and solar power plants that have been built as alternatives to the coal power projects currently benefiting the people of Pakistan.

Lastly, she expressed China’s desire to continue efforts that will help make the CPEC and the BRI green and sustainable for the country, adding that China has publicly declared the intention no longer to finance or build coal-fired plants overseas.

Apart from the keynote speakers and the special guests, the Executive Director of the Pakistan-China Institute also presented the concept of the Green CPEC Alliance. Dr Hina Aslam from the Sustainable Development Policy Institute was also present alongside him.

They explained the objectives of the Alliance. Mr Mustafa Sayed emphasized that this alliance is a first of its kind bringing all stakeholders to deliberate options that can make the CPEC green and sustainable.

He explained that the focus was on making sure that the promises made by the two governments on international fora like COP 26 and COP 23 are materialized. “This Alliance will focus on producing research in the form of policy briefs, reports and conferences that will push policymakers and other stakeholders to opt for greener options in development,” he said.

Zhang Jun, CEO of China Three Gorges (CTG) Corporation said that CTG is committed to its mission statement i.e., ‘Provide clean energy and build beautiful communities together’. He said CTG is committed to expanding its new energy business globally as part of the BRI plan and has established four international business lines: investment, construction, operation, and consultancy. He said CTG is also playing role in the implementation of the CPEC. “We believe that the CPEC agreement will provide huge socio-economic advantages to the people of both China and Pakistan, and we hope that in the future, we will be able to contribute to more clean projects under the CPEC that will provide even more socio-economic benefits,” he said. Muhammad Aurangzeb, CEO of Habib Bank Limited (HBL) appreciated the uniqueness of the initiative launched by the Pakistan-China Institute and Sustainable Development Policy Institute. He said that HBL is closely linked with CPEC projects in their financing as well as structuring.

Commenting on CPEC Phase 2, he remarked that the second phase is all about building further on the first phase of the project which has improved transport infrastructure and alleviated the energy crisis in Pakistan. He also expressed hope that the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) under CPEC, like Rashakai SEZ, would boost industrialization in the country. “Seeing this opportunity, HBL has already opened a branch in Rashakai. It is worthy to note that HBL is the signatory to the Green Investment Principles for greening investment in the Belt and Road. These include seven principles at three levels, i.e., strategy, operations, and innovation,” he said.

Lastly, he said he recommended learning from China’s experience since 40% of green bonds issued today are coming from China. “HBL is the first Pakistani bank to open a branch in Beijing,” he said.

Dr Abid Suleri, Executive Director, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) termed the launch of the ‘Green CPEC Alliance’ a timely initiative since humanity is facing the question of survival after the looming threat of Climate Change.

Appreciating China’s role in leading the initiatives to combat Climate Change, he said China has much to offer to the developed as well as developing countries for enhancing their capacity to combat Climate Change.

It is worth mentioning that Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari attended the Global Food Security Summit last week in which two key questions were discussed: i.e., the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on food security and how to ensure food security amidst Climate Change. This speaks about the urgency of the matter.

In her closing remarks, Senator Seemin Ezdi, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Climate Change said that Pakistan contributes less than 1% to Climate Change but is the 8th most affected country in the world.

It is the need of the hour, she maintained, to plan for the future since it is the issue that affects the whole of humanity, not only the countries responsible for it. Moreover, she expressed happiness with China’s desire to pursue green development through CPEC. The session lasted for two hours and had participation from a diverse audience of students, media, civil society, policymakers, parliamentarians, and environmentalists.