Islamabad, May 08, 2013 (PPI-OT): A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between IUCN Pakistan and the Federally Administered Tribal Area Secretariat at a ceremony, here in Islamabad today. According to the MoU, FATA Secretariat and IUCN Pakistan will cooperate in setting up and managing an Environmental Cell at the premises of the FATA Secretariat, Peshawar.
The MoU also seeks to formalize working arrangements to provide the basis for further cooperation. The FATA Sustainable Development Plan (2006-2015), which was prepared by the FATA Secretariat is a roadmap for development interventions in the region.
The Sustainable Development Plan (SDP) has identified several cross-cutting issues including environment and environmental governance. On July 25th 2008, a high level meeting chaired by the NWFP Governor, decided to establish the FATA Environment Cell in the Planning and Development Department of the FATA Secretariat with IUCN’s assistance.
The MoU was inked by Mr. Mahmood Akhtar Cheema, Country Representative IUCN Pakistan and Mr. Shahzad Khan Bangash, Secretary, Planning and Development Department, FATA, and will ensure a long lasting partnership between the two organizations.
Under this framework agreement, FATA Secretariat and IUCN Pakistan will collaborate to build and support the technical capacity of the Secretariat in the key areas of environmental governance, poverty alleviation, institutionalizing sustainability and promoting environmental education in FATA.
It will also work towards enhancing the capacity of the line agencies in environmental compliance, including Initial Environmental Examination (IEE), Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Sustainable Environmental Assessment (SEA); and assist in selecting directorates to mainstream FATA-SDP recommendations in sectoral policies while helping in mapping opportunities for SDP implementation. IUCN and FATA Secretariat will also be working on joint projects and agree on collective approaches to contact the potential donors.
For more information, contact:
Mr. Ghulam Qadir Shah
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Pakistan Country Office
1 Bath Island Road, Clifton
Karachi-75530
Pakistan
Tel: +92 (21) 586-1540 (4 lines-Auto)
Fax: +92 (21) 586-1448 and 583-5760
Email: ghulam.qadir@iucn.org