ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and China on Monday agreed to make China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) a model green belt and road initiative by calling it China-Pakistan Green Economic Corridor, said the statement.
Ministry of climate change in a statement said that a three-member delegation led by Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong called on Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam and discussed various matters of bilateral interest including environmental sustainability, climate resilience and renewable energy.
“We discussed in detail various matters for enhanced bilateral cooperation and opportunities pertaining to the fields of post-COVID-19 green economic recovery in Pakistan by enhancing investment in nature-based solutions and green job creations, environmental sustainability, climate resilience, forest management, air pollution, water conservation and disaster risk reduction,” Malik Amin Aslam said.
Meanwhile, China’s ambassador said that his government was also committed to extending support to the green vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan and his remarkable green initiatives including the Green Stimulus, a post-COVID-19 green recovery initiative for restoring people’s lives and livelihood affected by the pandemic.
Ambassador Nong Rong told Malik Amin Aslam that it’s heartening that Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision for green Pakistan was perfectly aligned to the Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vision for green China.
“However, 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 various adverse impacts of climate change on water, energy, food, health and education sectors,” the Chinese envoy said.
Malik Amin Aslam informed the Chinese envoy that an ambitious Protected Areas Initiative, approved by the Prime Minister, had been already launched under the umbrella programme ‘Clean Green Pakistan’, which was the present government’s historic milestone for nature conservation and promotion of nature-based solutions and creation of green jobs in the country. “It aims to expand the country’s protected areas cover from 13 percent to more than 15 percent by 2023 and create 5,000 green jobs across the country that are viewed as crucial in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, while at the same time safeguarding the country’s natural resources,” he said.
The Chinese envoy appreciated the present government’s green and clean initiatives, ambitious 10 Billion Tsunami Programme, protection and conservation programmes of environment, wildlife and Pakistan recharge programme for enhancing country’s resilience against deleterious fallouts of climate change on water, energy, agriculture, food security, energy, health, education and lives and livelihoods of the vulnerable rural and mountain communities.
Chinese ambassador Nong Rong remarked that Pakistan’s green and clean initiatives were truly inspiring initiated despite tight economic conditions.