KARACHI: Speakers at the recent launch of an Indus delta ecoregion deve­l­op­ment project have called for integrating conservation in businesses and forging alliances with the private sector willing to invest in bankable projects.

The Dutch Fund for Climate and Development (DFCD) Indus Delta Ecore­gion Landscape Initiative is to be jointly implemented by World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P) and Sindh Enterprise Deve­l­opment Fund (SEDF) of the Sindh government’s investment department.

“The idea behind this investment-based conservation model is to bring forth and implement innovative, self-sustaining, for-profit conservation models in the Indus delta ecoregion,” said Rab Nawaz, senior director programmes at WWF-P, while emphasizing the need for collaborative efforts for green businesses, biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of natural resources in Sindh.

The Indus delta ecoregion, he pointed out, had ranked 40th amongst the most biologically rich G200 ecoregions of the world. “It harbours riverine forests along the Indus, wetlands, mangrove forests in the coastal areas and desert ecosystems that occupy the periphery of the ecoregion.”

Nawaz urged the business community to support nature conservation and called for bringing innovation in sustainable management of natural resources, and diversifying alternative livelihood opportunities for the marginalized and climate-vulnerable communities across Sindh.

Provincial secretary inve­stment Zahid Ali Abb­asi said the department had played a vital role in providing conducive environment to attract investment and was keen to boost the country’s growth prospects.

“Through the SEDF, the department has been supporting businesses in multiple sectors including fisheries, agriculture, livestock, and energy, which are link­ed to natural resource management and are incr­edibly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Hence, our mandate is very much aligned with the DFCD initiative to promote nature-based bankable projects/businesses,” he said.

Mr Abbasi called for creating synergies amongst key stakeholders, developing ban­kable projects with private sector entities and ensuring that they deliver conservation outcomes, while simultaneously making a return on investment.

A documentary highlighting the need for integrated resource management was also screened at the event.

Published in Dawn, June 25th, 2021