PESHAWAR, Aug 07 (APP):Transparency International Pakistan organized a Capacity Building Training of Government Officers on Climate Sensitive Budgeting and Climate Finance Transparency.
According to a press release issued here on Wednesday, the workshop aimed to enhance the capacity of climate-related departments in understanding climate finance, planning processes and integrating transparency, and providing tools for tracking climate finance.
Senior officers from around 25 departments including Climate Change, Forest and Wildlife, Irrigation, Planning and Development, Livestock, Agriculture, Energy, Finance, Urban Development departments and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and Environment Protection Agency (EPA) attended the training.
Climate change and climate finance experts, Azmat Shahi, and Dawar Hameed Butt discussed climate financing frameworks, tools for tracking, monitoring and evaluation of climate finance, climate sensitive budgeting, global best practices for integrity and transparency in climate finance and the incorporation of these practices into the provincial public financial management system.
The experts discussed that capacity building of government departments is crucial to access the international climate finance and maintaining transparency into it.
The session also mainstreamed the awareness about scoring checklist developed by TI Pakistan. The scoring checklist focuses on incorporating climate-sensitive metrics into planning, budgeting, and implementation processes.
It was also discussed that auditing institutions such as Accountant General of Pakistan and anti-corruption bodies also need expertise in climate change. This expertise would ensure that audits consider not only the financial aspects but also environmental and climate factors, such as environmental impact assessments and carbon reduction efforts.
Saba Ali Asghar, Chief Environment and Climate Change briefed the participants that government approach was in process of approving Climate Change Policy 2024.
Justice (R) Ather Saeed, Board of Trustees TI Pakistan welcomed the participants, and said, “Judiciary has played an important role in pushing to address the effects of climate change.”
“There is a need for strong environmental tribunals at local levels for pushing on environmental issues,” he added.
Kashif Ali, Executive Director, Transparency International Pakistan spoke on Climate Procurement Transparency.
