Deputy Chairman Senator Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Chairman Library Committee Senate, Senator Azam Khan Swati, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed and Chairperson Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change, Senator Seemee Ezdi on Wednesday inaugurated the Kiosk Center in the Senate Libraries including LED’s for Presentation on information on climate change issues for the masses, and felicitated the World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Pakistan), and the Parliamentary Development Unit (PDU) of the Senate Secretariat, for establishing the Kiosk at the Senate of Pakistan. The Senate Panel expressed gratitude to be part of this symbolic initiative on the occasion of globally celebrated Zero Emission Day.
Senator Seemee Ezdi said that the goal of ZeDay is to help carbon emissions from atmosphere and give our planet “one day off a year”. She said that carbon emissions contribute to smog, acid rain, climate change and other factors, in turn climate change create conditions that cause catastrophic natural events. She said that Initiatives at grassroot level would make the actual change “we have the power to benefit everyone and everything on our Planet”, she emphasized
Senator Azam khan Swati while lamenting the devastating floods in the country urged the people of Pakistan to be the caretakers of our fragile environment ourselves and develop a genuine understanding that such energy consuming attitude is not good for us.
The Director General WWF-Pakistan Hammad Naqi Khan said that keeping in view the disastrous floods in Pakistan, WWF is developing a charter on floods and climate crisis which includes 20 institutes, private and public including the leading research institutes and have come together to work in collaboration. He said that the charter is already drafted and soon a seminar will be conducted for presentation on the policies introduced.
Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed called for a review on the working of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and said that powers should be disseminated at grass root levels. The Senate Panel came forward to make changes in the legislation and empower the Provincial Government to enable people who work on the ground. The Senate Panel emphasized to strengthened our ecological diplomacy, restructure and scale up our conservation efforts to address the current devastation brought on by the flood catastrophe in order to advance food security and global peace
Deputy Chairman Senate, Senator Mirza Muhammad Afridi expressed that the drastic climate change has caused direct effect to the agricultural sector, and if concrete steps are not taken on time we foresee a food crisis in the country. He emphasized that grouping/ zoning is essential to re-evaluate the crop growth.
The WWF recognized the efforts of the Parliamentary Development Unit (PDU) of the Senate of Pakistan in bringing the Parliament of Pakistan towards the first government body to go on “zero waste facility”.
Deputy Chairman Senator Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Senator Azam Khan Swati, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed , Senior Director WWF Mr Rub Nawaz, the Director General WWF-Pakistan Hammad Naqi Khan, the Director General (Coordination / PDU) Mr. Mir Shai Mazar Baloch and other members were present on the occasion.
Source: Senate of Pakistan