One billion trees target missed in KP due to insufficient funding

PESHAWAR: The Ten Billion Trees Project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has fallen short of its goal to plant one billion trees, according to project officials. They cited insufficient funding as the primary reason for not reaching the target.

Documents from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Climate Change and Forest Department reveal that the Ten Billion Trees Project was initiated by the federal and provincial governments in June 2019. The original goal was to plant one billion trees in the province within four years, concluding in June 2023. Following instructions from the Federal Ministry of Climate Change, the project was first extended to June 2024. In July of this year, the timeline was further extended to June 2025.

Under the Ten Billion Trees Project, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Climate Change and Forest Department was tasked with planting one billion trees in the province. By June 2024, the department had successfully planted 711.35 million trees, which constitutes 71 per cent of the target.

According to official documents, a total of Rs14.22 billion has been spent on the project in KP. Of this amount, Rs6.85 billion was drawn from the provincial Annual Development Program (ADP) and Rs7.37 billion from the federal Public Sector Development Program (PSDP). This expenditure represents 52 per cent of the funds originally allocated in Project Concept-I (PC-1).

The documents also reveal that the project has accrued arrears of Rs 1.79 billion due to insufficient funds and expenses related to hiring guards and other plant protection measures. To address this shortfall, the Secretary of Forests KP has requested the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to release Rs 1.34 billion from the Annual Development Program (ADP) and Rs 598.57 million from the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP).

Regarding the shortfall in meeting the target of planting one billion trees, Junaid Khan, the Project Director of the Ten Billion Trees Project, explained that only 72 per cent of the goal has been achieved. He attributed this shortfall to the limited funds allocated to the project.