FIRST BIODIVERSITY PARK OF ITS KIND LAUNCHED IN RAWALPINDI

FIRSTBIODIVERSITYPARK OF ITS KIND LAUNCHED IN RAWALPINDI

Pioneering Public-Private Partnership Gives Prior Access to Biodiversity

(Reissued as received.)

BANGKOK, 31 January (UN Information Services) -- The first biodiversity park of its kind in the world was officially opened today by representatives of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the Government of Pakistan and the private sector in Morgah, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

Participating in the launch was H.E. Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister of State for Economic Affairs, Government of Pakistan; Mr. Kim Hak-Su, UNESCAP Executive Secretary; Mr. Shuja Shah, Permanent Secretary, Economic Affairs Division, Government of Pakistan; Mr. Ziaul Haq, Additional Secretary, Economic Affairs Division, Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, Government of Pakistan and Chairman National Steering Committee of the Project; and Mr. M. Raziuddin, Chief Executive Officer, Attock Refinery Limited.

“In Asia and Pacific, conservation of biodiversity has assumed renewed importance after the recent tsunami which destroyed considerable parts of the region’s reserves of biodiversity such as forests, fish stocks, coral reefs and mangrove swamps”, Mr. Kim told the gathering.  “Efforts like the one in Morgah can serve as models for restoring the biodiversity of devastated countries and help prevent further loss of the sustainable livelihoods of the people.”

The Morgah Biodiversity Park Project is the brainchild of the Bangkok-based United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.  It brings together participants from the private sector, national and local governments, and the local community.  A part of UNESCAP's Pro-Poor Public-Private Partnership for poverty reduction, it is a follow-up of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2002.

Mr. Kim commended the Government of Pakistan and Attock Refinery Limited for the bold steps they had taken in pioneering this first public-private partnership in providing the poor with access to biodiversity.  He also noted the commitments made by senior officials of the Economic Affairs Division, Pakistan Museum of Natural History, and other agencies of the Government in implementing this challenging and historic project.

“It is my firm belief that experiences from this UNESCAP project will make a very important contribution to achieving the objectives of Pakistan’s National Environmental Action Plan, namely that of improving the state of environment in Pakistan, to safeguard public health, promote sustainable livelihoods and enhance the quality of life of people”, he said.  “I believe projects such as these are key to meeting the target of reversing losses of environmental resources by 2015, as set out in the UN Millennium Development Goals.”

In her remarks,Minister Hina Rabbani Khar noted that government resources alone are not sufficient to promote sustainable development and alleviate poverty.  “This initiative of mobilizing private sector represents a flexible solution to delivery of basic services and provides an alternative to the budgetary constraints on the Government.  We hope that the establishment of the Morgah Biodiversity Park, in partnership with linked institutions, will act as a major launching pad not only for conservation of species but also to create awareness on the important role stakeholders can play in protecting biodiversity resources in Pakistan in general and Potohar region in particular.”

She said the income generation activities created in the project through development of compost from organic waste and development of community gardens would go a long way in improving the income and environment of the two large villages, Morgah and Kotha Kalan, inhabited by 40,000 people.

Mr. M. Raziuddin, Chief Executive Officer, Attock Refinery Limited, said the MorgahBiodiversityPark is a living example that such diverse partners can work together efficiently.  “It is also evidence that biodiversity conservation is both good business and solid contribution to nation-building by giving poor people access to basic services”, he said.

The project was made possible by the generous financial support of the Royal Government of the Netherlands.

For further information, please, contact:  UN Information Centre Islamabad, Mr. Tetsuo M. Ohno, Director, tel:  0300 854 0058; Mr. Amin Ahmed, National Information Officer, tel:  0320 426 3862.  UN Information Services Bangkok, tel: ++66 2 288-1861/66, fax:  +66 2 288 1052, e-mail:  unisbkk.unescap@un.org.

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