The government is actively pursuing to ratify Kyoto Protocol, which the cabinet has discussed and the preparation is at advanced stage, said Secretary Environment Javed Hasan Ali while speaking at a workshop on Carbon Finance Initiative at World Bank Pakistan office.
It is to note that Pakistan is a signatory to Kyoto Protocol but has not yet ratified it.
Earlier, Asif Faiz, Programme Manager World Bank Carbon Finance Business, said that China and India are moving very quickly to capture carbon finance market. World Bank with $410 million is currently the largest financier of the carbon finance business, which restricts the growth of green house gases, by introducing alternate energy techniques.
While International Finance Corporation is working to finance 100 MW wind energy project in addition to some wastewater management projects in Faisalabad.
The Bank initiated the global carbon finance market with its pioneering prototype carbon fund (PCF) which became operational in year-2000. Six governments and 17 companies - including power and oil companies from Japan and Europe, and leading global banks - are contributing $180 million in funds to the PCF, which currently has 41 projects under preparation.
World Bank's carbon finance business has more than $410 million under management in six funds (either approved or under operation) which include:
-- Prototype carbon fund a public-private partnership,
-- The community development carbon fund which extends carbon finance to a smaller, poorer country,
-- The bio-carbon funds which applies carbon finance to community agriculture, forestry and improved land use,
-- OECD Country Funds (Netherlands, Italy) which expands carbon markets development and builds confidence for private direct investment in project-based emission reductions.
Many small-scale projects, such as mini-and micro hydro with energy, small municipal and agriculture waste projects could benefit the poor as they abate greenhouse gas emissions.
But proportionally higher business costs and risks in small and less developed countries, put such small-scale projects at a disadvantage when competing for carbon finance, making them likely to be bypassed by carbon investors with substantial compliance obligation and lack of knowledge of the business climate in poorer and smaller developing countries.
The World Bank is the largest development supplying loans and credits to developing countries and private sector for the long-term economic development - around $30 billion a year.
Comments
Comments are closed.