Reducing environmental degradation: World Bank for constituting national committee

Pakistan has agreed with the World Bank for constituting a National Committee with substantial provincial representation to review and select eligible proposals for "reducing the costs of environmental degradation".
According to Ministry of Environment sources, this committee will closely monitor the implementation of pilots to ensure the expected level of stakeholder participation including public and private sectors, non-governmental institutions, academia, media and others. While at the same time meeting the proposed outcomes in terms of reduction of environmental-related health costs. Results of pilots will be disseminated through periodic nation-wide public awareness campaigns.
For reducing the costs of environmental degradation, World Bank will provide US $18 million. WB project report revealed that the poor are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation and more so the children are particularly vulnerable, this component will finance the design and implementation of pilots aiming at demonstrating the feasibility and the measurable impacts that can be achieved through investments focused on decreasing environmental health impacts on children.
Therefore, pilots of project will address the country's top priorities in terms of environmental degradation, which are also the leading causes of child mortality from environmental risk factors, such as indoor and urban air pollution. Pilots will be implemented at the provincial and district level with the objective of demonstrating specific, replicable measures to improve environmental quality.
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION INTERVENTIONS COULD ENTAIL, FOR EXAMPLE:
i) campaigns that promote the use of improved stoves; ii) construction of community kitchens; and iii) campaigns that promote the use of cleaner fuels. Urban air pollution pilots could include, for instance: i) introducing use of low-sulphur fuel; ii) inspection and maintenance programs; iii) retrofit particle-control technology; and iv) campaigns to reduce emissions from industry sources.
WB Project report further explained that the scope of pilots will vary from province to province in order to target varying local environmental issues, but all pilots will be required to address national environmental priorities. For example, a pilot aiming at reducing impacts of air pollution in a province may target indoor pollution caused by the use of solid fuels for cooking, while one in a major city may focus on vehicular inspection controls to reduce mobile air pollution sources.
Consistent with the learning-by-doing approach to be followed through institutional strengthening of country systems, the design and implementation of pilots will also contribute to strengthening the capacity of environmental agencies to develop local methodologies for identifying environmental priorities, quantitatively assessing the risks and impacts of the various issues, elevating these risks to the provincial or federal governments, designing measures to address risks, informing the affected communities and finally implementing and monitoring these measures.
Pilot proposals will be prepared by the provinces and considered for funding according to the following preliminary eligibility criteria: (i) pilots consistent with identified environmental priorities, which are also in line with local priorities and that fit within the framework of the National Environmental Policy (NEP); (ii) pilots that contribute to the country's socio-economic growth as reflected to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; MDG 4 - Reduce child mortality; and MDG 7 - Ensure Environmental sustainability; (iii) demonstrated cost-effectiveness of intervention (eg benefit-cost ratio greater than one); (iv) impact of intervention benefiting the most vulnerable groups, (v) replicability potential; (v) available co-financing and resources from other sources, including the private sector and NGOs; (vi) adequate quantitative indicators for monitoring and evaluation; (vii) disclosure plan prepared; and (viii) procurement and financial mechanisms in place. Institutional arrangements and evaluation criteria will be discussed with the Pakistan Government in detail and will be refined during Project preparation.
World Bank will also provide US $8 million for Institutional strengthening of country systems. This component will support the government in the strengthening of institutional capacity for environmental management, consistent with the provisions of the National Environmental Policy (NEP), both at the federal and the provincial levels.
It will focus on providing federal and provincial governments the technical assistance needed to: i) identify and develop priority setting and co-ordination mechanisms; ii) engage a broad range of stakeholders in the development of environmental policies, and iii) design effective and efficient public policies to tackle environmental priorities.
In order to achieve these objectives, this proposed project was designed to promote a learning-by-doing approach focused on providing environmental and other key agencies with the skills and incentives that will enable them to promote sound environmental management and carry out interventions that will result in improved environmental conditions.
Activities under this project will further encourage the development of province-driven mechanisms (ie environmental priority setting) aimed at achieving concrete improvements in local environmental quality. This project will also involve the following activities:
i) Building the capacity to set environmental priorities linked with economic growth and poverty reduction;
ii) Establishment of mechanisms for co-ordination of environmental management agencies to ensure environmental priorities at the federal and provincial level are adequately identified and addressed;
iii) Establishment of mechanisms of cross-sectoral co-ordination to ensure that all government and non-governmental stakeholders are represented in the management of environmental priorities;
iv) Improving effectiveness of environmental management agencies to put in place action plans and develop efficient and effective interventions at the federal and provincial level that address environmental priorities;
v) Strengthening policy systems, including regulatory frameworks and their implementation;
vi) Strengthening of social accountability mechanisms to open environmental agencies' performance to public scrutiny;
vii) Monitoring and evaluation;
viii) Continuous improvement of environmental management.
Realising the costs and the potential long-term ramifications of environmental degradation, the Government of Pakistan is giving top priority to the environment, which is in fact one of the policy pillars of the recently elected Pakistan People's Party (PPP).
The GoP, through its Ministry of Environment (MoE), has requested a technical assistance loan from the Bank in the development of a project that enables a reduction in environmental degradation and its economic consequences, with the aim of underpinning the country's sustainable economic growth.
The government has further requested that this Project is implemented within the framework of the 2005 National Environmental Policy (NEP), and that it is a vehicle to strengthen the capacity of national environmental management agencies. The implementation of the largely conceptual framework of the NEP poses some considerable challenges, as has been demonstrated by past and only moderately successful attempts to promote co-ordinated environmental management in Pakistan.