ISLAMABAD: (APP) The Institute of Sustainable Development (ISD), the country's emerging think tank has been elected as Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) Civil Society Organization (CSO) observer for the Asia-Pacific Region, for term 2016-2018.
It was elected through a competitive online balloting system where 11 organizations participated from across Asia-Pacific region, in which ISD received the highest number of votes and regional balance (votes other than home country) of any candidate, said a news release issued here on Monday.
Kanwar Muhammad Javed Iqbal, the ISD representative would represent Asia-Pacific region as observer.
He would also solicit issues and concerns at FCPF participants committee, participants assembly and carbon fund meetings on behalf of civil society organizations and their constituencies, including youth and women's organizations and networks.
He will participate in FCPF related meetings, provide input, disseminate information among constituencies and would contribute to working groups that may be formed to take FCPF decisions forward.
Under FCPF governance mechanism, CSOs have the privilege of running self-selection process to elect their four regional representatives from across world i.e. northern or developed Countries region, ( Latin America & Caribbean region, Africa region, and Asia-pacific region.
During 2016-18 Pakistan would represent Asia-Pacific region originally developed as a concept by the World Bank and The Nature Conservancy (TNC),
The FCPF gained critical support in 2007, when Germany, as host of the group of Eight Summit, successfully advocated for the initiative to be endorsed by the G-8 governments.
Six months later, in December 2007, the FCPF was formally launched at the high-level United Nations climate negotiations in Bali by the World Bank, nine donor governments and TNC.
Today, the Partnership has grown to include 47 forest developing countries (18 in Africa, 18 in Latin America, and 11 in the Asia-Pacific region including Pakistan), 18 financial contributors (including two private companies and one NGO), active observers from indigenous peoples and civil society, and several international organizations as delivery partners.