Green Climate Fund approves Pakistan’s Climate Change Adaptation Project

ISLAMABAD: The Green Climate Fund (GCF) during its 14th Board meeting, held in Republic of Korea, has approved Pakistan’s US $36 million Climate Change Adaptation project responding to glacial outburst in northern Pakistan. 

The ministry of climate change together with United Nations Development Program (UNDP) had submitted this project for board’s approval.

Press release of the ministry said the Indian board member attempted to reject Pakistan’s proposal, citing unsubstantiated technical reasons. However, the other 23 board members, who considered the project fit for approval, out rightly rejected these claims and approved the project.

Pakistan also holds an alternate seat at the board (with Saudi Arabia) and was able to effectively mitigate the false perceptions that were being propagated by the Indian member, it added.

“The approved project will impact the lives of thousands of people who are living in constant danger of periodic glacial outbursts in the Northern Pakistan.

“The main project outputs are: Strengthened sub-national institutional capacities to plan and implement climate change-resilient development pathways and Community-based Early Warning System (EWS) and long-term measures are up-scaled to increase communities’ adaptive capacity,” it said.

According to the press release, the project will address climate change impacts and Glacial Lake Outbursts Floods (GLOF) risks by preventing loss of lives and community infrastructure based on a holistic approach in all 7 districts of Gilgit-Baltistan and 5 districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, thus, contributing to a climate-resilient sustainable development in the long-term.

The proposed project will benefit about 15% of the total population of Pakistan, estimated at 185 million, as of 2014, according to World Bank data.

“The project outcome will strengthen adaptive capacity and reduce exposure to climate risks posed by climate change impacts and GLOF risks through the increased technical capacity of provincial and line departments to integrate CC and GLOF risks into development plans, tools and budgets and by expanding the Pakistan Meteorological Department’s Early Warning System (EWS) based on hydrological modeling and flood scenarios,” the press release said.

It said the project will also strengthen sub-national institutional capacities to plan and implement climate change and disaster-resilient development pathways as proposed outputs and activities will develop the capabilities of local level institutions and federal level institutions to incorporate climate change adaptation considerations into development plans in GB and KP.