ISLAMABAD – The World Bank has shown its interest to provide $188 millionto fund the upcoming Ecosystem Restoration Initiative aims at implementingthe ‘Ten Billion Tree Tsunami’ and ‘Recharge Pakistan’ programmes.
The $188 million fund will be placed under the National Disaster RiskManagement Fund (NDRMF), as it already has a framework and mechanism inplace for quick and efficient disbursement of the money.
NDRMF has already been financing projects through funding being arrangedfrom the Asian Development Bank, said a press release issued on Sunday.
The Ecosystem Restoration Initiative in addition to financing afforestationprojects such as the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami would also focus on RechargePakistan, E-Vehicles, Marine Life and Blue Economy, Biodiversity and LandDegradation, provision of early warning radars and eco-tourism.
The PTI government has had launched these major initiatives as part ofclimate change mitigation and adaptation, and fighting environmentaldegradation.
The TBTT project is an up-scaled version of the project implemented by thePTI government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa between 2013 and 2018.
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The Ecosystem Restoration Initiatives will not only provide money to theprovincial governments and other implementation partners through grantfinancing, it will also free up space in the budget allocations for thegovernment.
The bank has already held consultations with federal governmentdepartments, provincial governments and non-governmental organisations inthe last few weeks to finalise restructuring proposal of its Hydro-MetProject.
The hydro-meteorological and climate services project is aimed atstrengthening the government’s capacity to deliver reliable and timelyweather, hydrological and climate information and services to userdepartments and communities.
Now the bank will use the project funds to finance the EcosystemRestoration Initiative.
