Protected Areas Initiative (Pakistan)

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Protected Areas Initiative
LocationPakistan
OwnerMinistry of Climate Change (Pakistan)
EstablishedJuly 2020 (2020-07)
Budget₨4 billion (approx. US$24 million)
Status15 model national parks established or rehabilitated
Websitemocc.gov.pk

The Protected Areas Initiative (PAI) is a programme of the Government of Pakistan, launched in 2020 under the federal "Green Stimulus" scheme. It aims to expand and improve the country's protected areas, strengthen their management, and create employment opportunities in conservation through the establishment of a proposed National Parks Service. The first phase o the initiative focused on fifteen national parks, nine newly declared and six existing, covering over 7,300 square kilometres (730,000 ha) across Pakistan.[1][2]

Background

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The initiative was announced in mid-2020 under the government's Green Stimulus package as a response to the socio-economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was designed to generate employment in conservation, enhance ecosystem resilience, and increase national protected-area coverage. The programme is implemented by the Ministry of Climate Change in collaboration with provincial governments and the IUCN.[3][4]

The Prime Minister's Office described it as a step towards creating a new "National Parks Service," training thousands of young people in ecosystem restoration, park management, and eco-tourism, while moving toward IUCN "Green List" certification for high-performing sites.[5]

Objectives

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The initiative's main goals were to:

  • Establish or rehabilitate 15 national parks as model sites of conservation and eco-tourism;
  • Create approximately 5,000 green jobs for local communities through a new National Parks Service;
  • Expand Pakistan's protected-area coverage from 12–13% to 15% of national territory; and
  • Strengthen management plans, monitoring systems, and law enforcement across existing parks.[6]

Implementation

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The Ministry of Climate Change earmarked approximately Rs. 4 billion (US$24 million) for the first three years of implementation, of which 80% was directed to community employment and conservation works.[7]

In December 2020, the Prime Minister inaugurated two new high-altitude national parks in Gilgit-Baltistan: Himalaya National Park and Nanga Parbat National Park, covering about 3,600 square kilometres (360,000 ha), roughly 5% of GB's area.[8]

The PAI was also used as a framework for provincial initiatives such as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa National Park Service, launched in 2020-2022, and the Punjab Protected Areas Act, 2020, which provided a new legal basis for park designation and management.[9][10]

List of model parks (Phase I)

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Independent and official sources indicate that Phase I comprised 15 national parks (nine newly declared and six older sites made functional), though a single consolidated list is not publicly available. The following are parks explicitly named in reliable sources as part of the PAI or its Phase-I "model parks" portfolio:

Model parks named in sources (explicit mentions)
National park Province/Region Basis in source (PAI/model-park linkage)
Himalaya National Park Gilgit-Baltistan Federal press note: two high-altitude parks "under the Prime Minister’s Protected Areas Initiative." "PR No. 09: Two new high altitude National Parks in GB". Press Information Department. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Nanga Parbat National Park Gilgit-Baltistan Partner to Himalaya NP in the same PAI launch. "PR No. 09: Two new high altitude National Parks in GB". Press Information Department. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Sheikh Badin National Park Khyber Pakhtunkhwa UNEP-WCMC feature and KP press identify it as a "model park." "Building back better after COVID-19: Pakistan's Protected Areas Initiative". Protected Planet (UNEP-WCMC). 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025. "Rs649m plan developed for biodiversity conservation, eco-tourism promotion". Dawn. 13 May 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Margalla Hills National Park Islamabad Capital Territory Highlighted by Reuters within the 15-park framework. "In green jobs boost, communities get bigger role running Pakistan's national parks". Reuters. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Khunjerab National Park Gilgit-Baltistan Cited in Reuters' account of Phase I spanning "from Khunjerab … to the area around Astola." "In green jobs boost, communities get bigger role running Pakistan's national parks". Reuters. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Kheri Murat National Park Punjab Reported June–July 2020 in the Green Stimulus/PAI national-park expansion. "Forest area near Fatehjang to be made national park: adviser". Dawn. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Murree–Kotli Sattian–Kahuta (MKKS) National Park Punjab Declared June 2023; IUCN-assisted management-plan validation linked to PAI/Green Stimulus. "Declaration of the area as Murree, Kahuta and Kotli Sattian National Park (No. 92 of 2023)" (PDF). Government of the Punjab – Laws. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2025. "Murree–Kahuta–Kotli Sattian National Park: management plan validated". IUCN. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Pabbi–Rasul National Park Punjab Declared/reaffirmed 2020–2023; provincial project documentation within the PAI timeframe."Declaration of the area as Pabbi Rasool National Park (No. 89 of 2023)" (PDF). Government of the Punjab – Laws. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2025. "Development of Pabbi National Park". Forest, Wildlife & Fisheries Department, Punjab. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Malkandi National Park Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Notified 2022 under the KP National Park Service delivering PAI objectives. "Govt notifies 11 sites as 'protected areas'; Malkandi notified as national park". Dawn. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Nizampur National Park Khyber Pakhtunkhwa KP NPS notification 2022 aligned with PAI. "Govt notifies 11 sites as 'protected areas'; Nizampur given status of national park". Dawn. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
Kamal Ban National Park Khyber Pakhtunkhwa KP NPS notification 2022 aligned with PAI. "Govt notifies 11 sites as 'protected areas'; Kamal Ban declared national park". Dawn. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2025.

Notes: Government and international partners consistently reference 15 Phase-I parks totaling >7,300 km², though a consolidated federal list is not publicly available (as of 10 October 2025). "Pakistan ramps up Protected Areas". UNEP. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025. "Govt to spend Rs4bn over three years to preserve 15 national parks". Dawn. 4 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.

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Phase I was framed as country-wide, covering sites "from Khunjerab … to the area around Astola Island on the Arabian Sea coast."[11]

  • Sindh: The UNEP's report on the PAI highlights Sindh's mangrove systems and coastal wetlands within Pakistan's protected-area expansion. Sindh strengthened its legal framework through the Sindh Wildlife Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Management Act, 2020, although no Sindh park has been explicitly listed among Phase-I model parks.[14][15]

Reception

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The initiative received broad international support. UNEP and IUCN described it as a "landmark step" in Pakistan's biodiversity policy, while analysts noted persistent challenges in financing and staff capacity.[17][18][19]

Legacy

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By 2023, national protected-area coverage had risen to 13.9%, with a target of 15% set in the National Climate Change Policy 2021/22. The PAI's principles were integrated into Pakistan's biodiversity reporting under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Aichi Target 11 dossier.[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "In green jobs boost, communities get bigger role running Pakistan's national parks". Reuters. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  2. ^ "Pakistan ramps up Protected Areas". United Nations Environment Programme. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  3. ^ "Building back better after COVID-19: Pakistan's Protected Areas Initiative". Protected Planet (UNEP-WCMC). 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  4. ^ "Pakistan's Protected Areas Initiative". IUCN. 13 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  5. ^ "Prime Minister gives go-ahead for launch of Protected Area Initiative under the Green Pakistan programme". Prime Minister’s Office (Pakistan). 1 June 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  6. ^ "Govt to spend Rs4bn over three years to preserve 15 national parks". Dawn. 4 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  7. ^ "In green jobs boost, communities get bigger role running Pakistan's national parks". Reuters. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  8. ^ "PR No. 09: Prime Minister announced two new high altitude National Parks in Gilgit-Baltistan". Press Information Department (Pakistan). 2 December 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  9. ^ "Govt notifies 11 sites as 'protected areas'; Malkandi notified as national park". Dawn. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  10. ^ "The Punjab Protected Areas Act, 2020". Government of the Punjab – Laws. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  11. ^ "In green jobs boost, communities get bigger role running Pakistan's national parks". Reuters. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  12. ^ "Astola Island management plan endorsed — a national milestone for marine protection". IUCN. 29 April 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  13. ^ "Miani Hor declared third Marine Protected Area in Pakistan". WWF. 29 July 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  14. ^ "Pakistan ramps up Protected Areas". UNEP. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  15. ^ "The Sindh Wildlife Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Management Act, 2020" (PDF). FAOLEX. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  16. ^ "AJK's Poonch River is now 'Mahasheer National Park'". Dawn. 17 December 2010. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  17. ^ "Pakistan ramps up Protected Areas". UNEP. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  18. ^ "Pakistan's Protected Areas Initiative". IUCN. 13 July 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  19. ^ "Pakistan government aims to protect new parks but neglects the old". Dialogue Earth. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  20. ^ "Pakistan: Aichi Target 11 Country Dossier (2021)" (PDF). Convention on Biological Diversity. 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2025.