Aurangzeb calls for stronger climate financing and project pipeline

Aurangzeb calls for stronger climate financing and project pipeline

Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has stressed the need for stronger policy frameworks, greater domestic capacity and a steady pipeline of investment-ready projects to turn Pakistan’s climate commitments into tangible benefits for communities.

Addressing an event on the Climate Implementation Bridge in New York, Aurangzeb said Pakistan needed to move beyond making climate pledges and focus on implementing them through practical projects that could deliver measurable results for people.

The finance minister highlighted access to climate financing as a key challenge, saying Pakistan must improve its ability to develop and execute projects that can attract funding from international institutions and climate finance mechanisms.

Aurangzeb noted that Pakistan is working to mobilise resources from domestic sources, international financial institutions and dedicated climate funds. However, he pointed to institutional fragmentation as one of the obstacles slowing down the implementation of climate-related initiatives.

He also highlighted the shortage of investment-ready projects as another major hurdle in accessing climate finance. According to the minister, the availability of financial resources alone cannot ensure progress unless countries have the institutional capacity and well-prepared projects needed to utilise those funds effectively.

Referring to the devastating floods of 2022, Aurangzeb said some international financial resources could not be fully utilised because of a lack of suitable projects. He stressed that Pakistan needed to strengthen its project preparation capacity so that available international support could translate into concrete development and climate resilience initiatives.

The finance minister called for greater coordination among relevant institutions and urged stakeholders to develop a stronger framework for mobilising and deploying climate-related resources.

Aurangzeb said achieving Pakistan’s climate objectives would require the country to bring together domestic and international sources of financing. He emphasised that climate commitments should ultimately produce visible and practical outcomes for vulnerable communities rather than remain limited to policy declarations.

He further stressed that effective implementation would depend on stronger institutions, better project pipelines and improved access to financing, enabling Pakistan to address climate risks while advancing sustainable development.