10 April 2004	Saturday	19 Safar 1425

ISLAMABAD, April 9: A two-day national conference on "Concept Formulation of Mountain Areas Conservancy Initiative" concluded here on Thursday with the resolve to engender more national and international commitment for conservation of Pakistan's mountain areas resources.

Conservation planners and experts from various parts of the country forwarded a series of recommendations to design a national conceptual framework for protection of mountain specific biodiversity and natural resources.

Speaking on the occasion, Federal Environment Secretary Javed Hassan Ali said the government was aware of the need for protection and preservation of the mountains biological diversity.

He said the government with the support of Global Environment Facility (GEF), United Nations Development Programme, IUCN, The World Conservation and many other international and local NGOs had already started working with the local communities on conservation and sustainable resource use initiatives.

"However, there is need for a more holistic approach to take on the challenge, there is scope for more integration, expansion and synergies in managing the concept," he said. Earlier, the delegates deliberated on key aspects and institutional mechanisms required to effectuate the mountain areas conservancy initiative.

The workshop convenor Peter Henman, who is an internationally renowned expert, explained and shared the findings of the recently held mid-term review of the Mountain Areas Conservancy Project (MACP), which is being implemented in parts of NWFP and the Northern Areas.

He said the project had been successful in mobilizing the communities, building their capacities and imparting conservation awareness at the grass-roots level.

Nonetheless, in order to ensure continuation of the process in the long term, a system- based operational framework was required to carry forward the conservation process ignited by the MACP experience.

Summing up the two-day extensive proceedings, Javed Ali Khan, Director General Environment, declared the workshop an important milestone in moving towards a programme approach from the existing project specific mode of operation.