ISLAMABAD, Jun 8 (APP): The Living Indus Initiative (LII) aspires to transform the Indus Basin into a thriving system by repairing and restoring the natural resources and ecosystems that are resilient in the face of climate change, thus advancing Pakistan’s commitment to SDG Goal-13 on Climate Action.
According to the Economic Survey 2022-23, Pakistan has been consistently ranked amongst the top ten most vulnerable countries to climate change, mostly because of the impacts on the Indus system.
The Indus river system is the lifeline of Pakistan, in more ways than one. More than 80% of Pakistan’s arable land is irrigated by the waters of the Indus. Nine out of the ten largest cities in Pakistan are situated within 50km or less of the waters of the Indus.
The degradation of the Indus Basin presents a precarious economic, social, ecological as well as demographic challenge to Pakistan as a developing country.
The Living Indus Initiative, spearheaded by the MoCC, in collaboration with the United Nations, was approved by the Cabinet in September 2022 and presented at COP-27.
The Initiative aspires to transform the Indus Basin into a thriving system by repairing and restoring the natural resources and ecosystems that are resilient in the face of climate change, thus advancing Pakistan’s commitment to sustainable development goal (SDG) Goal-13 on Climate Action.
The Initiative proposes a diverse set of 25 interventions to initiate coordinated executive efforts to restore the health of the Indus Basin in Pakistan with particular focus on water, ecology, biodiversity, and agriculture sectors.
The ecological restoration of the Indus Basin under LII will require indicative investment of between $ 11 billion to $16 billion (from public, private and development sector) in the short to medium term in the next 10-15 years’ time.
Interventions under Living Indus Initiatives included Green Infrastructure for Flood Control and Groundwater Recharge, 100,000 Community Ponds, Sustainable Groundwater Governance through Provincial Water Acts, Nature-Based Resilient Agriculture, Indus Clean-up: Industrial and Urban Effluent Treatment, Salinity Control in the Lower Indus, Climate Resilience on the Indus Delta, Sustainable Aquaculture and Fisheries Management, A Living Indus Knowledge Platform: Crowd sourcing knowledge, Indus Trust Fund, Climate and Nature Performance Bonds for a Living Indus, Social Entrepreneurship for a Climate Resilient Indus, Community Access to Clean Energy, Zero Plastic Waste Cities Along the Indus, Urban Forests along the Indus, Indus Protection Act, Indus Protected Areas, Build Back Biodiversity in the Indus Basin, Community Based Ecotourism, Indus Heritage Sites, Nature-Based Watershed Management, Expanded GLOF-II, Promoting Permaculture, Managing Agricultural Wastewater, and telling the Living Indus Story.
