Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
Allow me to extend, on behalf of Pakistan delegation, our warmest felicitations
to you and to the Bureau of CSD-14 on the assumption of your responsibilities.
2 . The Fourteenth Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, will
carry out a review of the progress made in the further implementation of the Agenda 21
and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation in the thematic cluster on "Energy,
Industrial Development, Air pollution/atmosphere and Climate Change" .
3 . We are grateful to the Secretariat for presenting a set of comprehensive reports
on the issues before us during this review session of the implementation cycle 2006-
2007 . The reports would indeed facilitate a focused and productive exchange .
4. Our discussions this year under the thematic cluster on "Energy, climate
change, industrial development and air pollution", are very timely and topical for a host
of reasons, namely :
First, the physical reality of environmental issues has became evident more than
ever before . The notion that "environmental processes are governed by nature
not international policy has become painfully evident . Consequently, there is a
widespread recognition that the danger to the planet s environment is far greater
today than it was before .
Second, the progress towards the goal of achieving sustainable development, as
described by the Secretary General, is at best mixed and limited, with large
pockets of poverty in regions and countries still persisting .
Third, the unprecedented increase in the energy prices have provoked concerns
over energy security and placed a question mark on the sustainability of the
progress made by the developing countries towards the achievement of
internationally agreed development goals including MDGs .
Fourth, important and welcome commitments towards the enhancement of
ODA and grant of debt relief have been made . Similarly, progress has also been
made in exploring new and innovative sources of financing .
Five, important consultative processes including the Secretary General s High
Level Panel on System wide coherence and the General Assembly Consultations
on Environment are going on, which may have a bearing on existing
institutional arrangements for environmental activities .
Mr. Chairman,
5 . We are confident that our deliberations this year would generate serious and in
depth policy discussions that should help build a better common understanding on how
best to face the global environmental challenges and to optimally exploit the existing
opportunities .
6. Energy, industrial development, air pollution and climate change, in addition to
being closely inter linked, have an important and critical bearing on sustainable
economic growth and development . Addressing, in an integrated manner, the
sustainable development challenges relating to these issues can serve to enhance
synergies, help seize win-win opportunities and minimize trade-offs where they exist .
7.
Pakistan strongly feels that addressing environmental degradation together with
eliminating poverty, collectively, urgently and effectively is a contemporary imperative .
8. We are increasingly conscious that pursuit of growth and development has
placed a heavy burden on sustainability . Over the last decade, we have made significant
progress in Pakistan in developing the environmental policy and regulatory
frameworks, development of environmental institutions and raising awareness .
9. We have advanced the environmental agenda from being seen as a stand-alone
topic to the one that identifies itself as an integral element of the national mainstream
development agenda . Our Medium Term Development Framework MTDF seeks to
establish a just and sustainable economic system and achieving Millennium
Development Goals.
Mr . Chairman,
10. Our "National Environmental Policy 2005" provides an overarching framework
for achieving the goals of sustainable development . The Policy aims to improve the
quality of life of people of Pakistan through conservation, protection and improvement
of the country s environment and effective cooperation among government agencies,
civil society, private sector and other stake holders . Furthermore, Initial Environmental
Examination IEE and the Environment Impact Assessment EIA have been made
mandatory for the public sector development projects . Some of the other relevant
strategies and plans, to be elaborated further in individual sub-clusters discussions,
include National Response Strategy on Climate Change, Environmental accounting and
auditing : Agro-eco-zoning, Fuel switching .
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11 . Yet unfortunately, the degradation of environment, continues affecting
livelihoods and health as well as increasing vulnerability of the poor to disasters and
environment-related conflicts . The current cost of environmental degradation is
considerably higher . An assessment by the World Bank estimated the total cost of
remediation at 2 .6 percent of the GDP.
12 . Availability of adequate funding and resources was and remains a significant
challenge and a major constraint in effectively addressing global environmental
challenges . The recent commitments to enhance ODA flows and to grant debt relief,
welcome as they are, need to be implemented at the earliest . There is also a need and a
strong case for considering their consolidation and expansion to cover other deserving
developing countries, particularly in case of debt relief measures . Trade market access
through the early and development-oriented completion of the Doha Round of Trade,
access to new and environmentally friendly technologies on concessional terms,
including renewable energy technologies, technical assistance for capacity building, and
investment in infrastructure are the other important measures that would help
developing countries generate the much needed fiscal space and additional resources to
implement their national development strategies in a sustainable manner .
I thank you.
