PM to launch Clean Green Pakistan Index on Oct 30

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Adviser on Climate Change, Malik Amin Aslam, said on Sunday that the flagship initiative Clean Green Pakistan Index (CGPI) is set to be launched on October 30.

The initiative aims to create competition among various cities of the country on various indicators including public access to clean drinking water, safe sanitation, effective solid waste management and tree plantation.

He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan would launch the Clean Green Pakistan Index on October 30 at a grand launching ceremony attended by political dignitaries and civil society representatives.

The adviser said baseline data of 19 competing cities will be announced to kick off the first phase of six-month competition among these cities of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He added that after six months, these competing cities would be ranked again and those with prominent progress with be rewarded with special federal and provincial government funds. After six months, more cities will be added in competition as second phase of the programme.

The prime minister’s adviser said that the CGPI has been rolled out by the ministry under the Prime Minister Imran Khan’s political manifesto of clean and green Pakistan and environmental conservation and sustainability.

He said that present government is focusing on transforming overall outlooks of the countries cities, which will play key economic engines of the country in coming days.

“Now cities in many countries across the world are playing vital roles in overall socio-economic development of the countries. It is because, cities are now providing economies of scale and they are also providing efficient infrastructure and services through density and concentration in sustainable transportation, communications, power, human interactions, water and sanitation services and effective waste management and enhanced urban forestry activities,” said the adviser.

Explaining various aspects of the CGPI, Climate Change Ministry Secretary Hassan Nasir Jami said the initiative comprises five pillars of Clean Green Pakistan Movement launched by the prime minister last year including water, sanitation, hygiene, solid waste management and plantation.

The CGPI will primarily measure clean and green characters of the cities on different 27 indicators under these five pillars, each would be assigned equal weightage of 20 marks during assessment of the cities.

Besides, this index will also be used as measuring-rod as performance indicator for making annual budgetary allocations to the provinces from the national kitty, the secretary added.

Regarding the data gathering for the 27 indicators, Acting Inspector General of Forests at the Climate Change Ministry, Muhammad Suleman Khan Warraich explained that the data for the index would be gathered through surveys to be conducted by local government departments.

He said the data would be obtained after every three months from the respective city councils and administration working in each district of the provincial cities.

Once the data has been evaluated by the climate change ministry, the results for the performance of the cities on five pillars would be announced twice a year.

He hoped that the index would be used as a yardstick for improving role of cities in transforming overall living standards of its inhabitants through improved environmental services.