By: Shahid Husain
Karachi: Pakistan is unlikely to meet its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) regarding forest coverage because after the 18th Amendment it has become a provincial subject and the Sindh government has its own priorities, law and order being topmost, Benazir Income Support Programme etc, a well-placed source in the ministry of climate change told The News on Thursday.
“The forest cover in Pakistan is 5.01 percent of its land mass but since 70-75 percent of Pakistan comprises arid or semi arid areas where rains are scanty it is unlikely that Pakistan will be able to meet MDG by 2015,” the source said.
The source said that it was a misconception that ideally a country should have 25 percent forest coverage.
“There are countries with 70 percent forest coverage but Pakistan can’t be compared with such countries because it has scarcity of water,” the source said.
“Twenty-one billion rupees are needed to increase forest cover by one percent,” the source said.
The source said that the MDG was to increase forest cover by six per cent by 2015 but the federal government was short of funds and after NFC Award share of the federal government had been squeezed.
The source said that a Committee had been formed to meet the Millennium Development Goals for forestry under the leadership of Begum Shahnaz Ali, MNA, and it was doing its best to meet the target but unless the private sector and multinational companies lend a helping hand and pour in money it would be difficult to meet the target.
“Corporate Social Responsibility should include environment as social responsibility in its agenda,” the source said.
The source said a meeting of the committee formed under Begum Shahnaz Ali, MNA, was held on Thursday and it had met previously too and was doing good work but the problem was that the federal government was short of funds.
Asked if attempts were being made to procure foreign funding in this regard, he said foreign funding was very limited and mainly comprised technical assistance.
“Healthy debate is going on in the committee formed under the ministry of climate change but multinational companies and the private sector should come forward because they use our resources and infrastructure,” the source said.
Another source said that 40 per cent of agricultural water in Pakistan was lost in seepage and water theft by big landlords and until and unless there was no canal lining the problem of scarcity of water could not be resolved.
