IMF to give Pakistan $1b in climate finance: finance minister tells senate committee

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) had announced $500 million in climate financing for Pakistan. Now next week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will give Pakistan another $1 billion climate finance. This was announced by Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb in a briefing to the meeting of Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change.

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The meeting, chaired by committee chairperson Senator Sherry Rehman, also discussed the policy framework for spending the incoming climate financing.

CLIMATE FINANCING

During the committee meeting, finance minister said that “population and climate are our main issues. After COP29, some progress has been made on the Loss and Damage Fund.” The finance minister said that the government has also talked to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) today regarding carbon markets.

“We should first use the funds we have, to deal with environmental challenges,” the Finance Minister said.

Senator Sherry Rehman responded that Pakistan’s climate financing is even less than that of Bangladesh. “The problem is capacity. No one will come to help you unless you have a plan,” she said.

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The finance minister informed the committee that the government is trying to issue Green Panda Bond. “We should use what we have. We have lost our credibility as a country,” he added.

Aurangzeb had made similar comments during the climate conference held in Islamabad earlier this month. He, along with representatives of the IMF, World Bank and energy experts had urged that Pakistan needs to arrange for climate financing on its own, and treat climate impact as an urgency.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Sherry Rehman then spoke on electric vehicles, saying that she met with electric vehicle manufacturers a few days ago. “There are reservations regarding the tax on electric vehicles,” she said.

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Finance Minister Aurangzeb replied that the government has handed over the tax issues on electric vehicles from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to the Ministry of Finance. “Our move will facilitate manufacturing and other matters for electric vehicle companies. We have handed over the tax issues on electric vehicles from the FBR to the Ministry of Finance,” he said.

CAPACITY BUILDING

Sherry Rehman also spoke on Mangroves forests being planted in Pakistan, but said that work needs to be done for waste management.

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Ministry of Climate Change Secretary told the Senate committee that a workshop is also scheduled with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on Monday.

The ministry secretary also informed that the government is also in touch with the chief secretaries of all four provinces in this regard.