ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday said it has initiated work on a number of green financing instruments, buoyed by widespread global investor interest in the country's first green bond floated in the international market last week.
A Pakistani utility company on May 27 launched the country's first-ever US dollar-denominated green Eurobonds, seeking $500 million for environmentally friendly projects to enhance the clean energy share in the country's power generation mix, which relies heavily on fossil fuels -- particularly coal.
"The green bond was six times oversubscribed ... which shows there is a global appetite for a country that has economic stability and as well as green credibility," Climate Change Minister Malik Amin Aslam told Reuters.
The South Asian nation, which is the host country of the UN's annual World Environment Day on June 5, is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change and has been hit hard by extreme weather events including devastating floods.
It is now looking to become a major player in the global green financing market.
Aslam said Pakistan plans to further tap the green bond avenue for building and transport financing.
Pakistan on Thursday also completed its first assessment for blue bonds, a financing instrument that raises capital from global investors for projects that protect ocean ecology and related industries, such as fisheries and eco-tourism.
For this, Aslam said that Pakistan had launched its first blue carbon estimation, aided by the World Bank.
He said the World Bank had estimated the country's new plantation projects -- including planting 10 billion trees over the next few years -- if nurtured successfully would be worth $500 million by 2050.
The World Bank, he said, had used conservative estimates for carbon pricing, and the valuation could go up to $2.5 billion.
Pakistan on Thursday also released a joint statement with Canada, Britain, Germany and the United Nations Development Program outlining its push to establish a "Nature Performance Bond" to provide the country with accelerated access to development financing and debt relief in exchange for meeting ecosystem restoration targets.
"The nature bond is chartering totally unchartered territory," Aslam said. The bond will be developed by a consortium of financial advisers and is in its initial stages.
Pakistan rolls out plans to tap global green financing avenues
https://arab.news/wjstx
Pakistan rolls out plans to tap global green financing avenues
- The country is vulnerable to the world climate change and plans to be a major player in the global green financing market
- Pakistan has also completed its first assessment for blue bonds to protect ocean ecology and related fisheries and ecotourism industries
Pakistan warns against landslides, avalanches next week amid rain and snowfall prediction
- Westerly wave likely to approach western areas from Dec. 29, persist till Jan. 2, says Met Office
- Pakistan advises tourists to exercise caution while traveling in northern areas during the period
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Meteorological Department on Sunday warned against the possibility of landslides and avalanches in the country’s northern areas next week, as it forecast heavy rains and snowfall in hilly regions.
The Met Office predicted that a westerly wave is likely to approach Pakistan’s western areas from Dec. 29 and strengthen from Dec. 30 onwards. This wave is expected to grip most upper and central parts of the country on Dec. 31 and persist in the upper areas till Jan. 2, the PMD said.
“Possibility of landslides/avalanches in hilly areas of upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir during the period,” the PMD warned.
“Tourists are advised to remain extra cautious and avoid unnecessary traveling during the period.”
The advisory warned that rainfall with wind and thunderstorm and snowfall is likely in Punjab’s Murree and the Galliyat region from Dec. 30 to Jan. 2 with occasional gaps. It also warned of rain with wind, thunderstorms and moderate snowfall in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir regions during the same period.
The PMD warned of rain with wind and thunderstorms, with moderate to heavy snowfall in upper areas from Dec. 30 to Jan. 1 in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
For Sindh and Balochistan provinces, the PMD warned that rain with wind and thunderstorms with snowfall were expected over hilly areas from Dec. 29-31.
The PMD warned snowfall may cause road closures or slippery conditions in the northern areas of Naran, Kaghan, Dir, Swat, Kohistan, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Shangla, Astore, Hunza, Skardu, Murree, Galliyat and Neelum Valley from Dec. 30 to Jan. 2.
“Fog condition is likely to subside in central/southern parts of Punjab and upper Sindh during the wet spell,” it said.
“Daytime temperatures are likely to drop further in the coming week, particularly after the spell.”
Authorities in the past have urged people to avoid northern areas or exercise caution in travel when weather conditions are expected to deteriorate during the winter season.
At least 21 people, including nine children, died in freezing temperatures after being stuck in their vehicles in the Pakistani hill station of Murree in January 2022 when roads became impassable due to heavy snow.
