Thari people to get financial incentive for growing trees as ‘Cool the Earth’ initiative launched

The Participatory Village Development Programme (PVDP) Sindh has launched the "Cool the Earth" plantation initiative here at a ceremony with the unique feature of financial incentives for the participating underserved communities.

The first phase of the tree plantation drive is being rolled out in Tharparkar, involving the local people who will be incentivised to grow trees. This ambitious programme aims to combat climate change and foster environmental sustainability through community-led tree plantations.

For the first four years of the drive, every rural family from Thar participating in the plantation activity will receive a financial incentive of Rs20 per plant per month to take care of and properly nurture the newly planted saplings near their households and farmlands.

The "Cool the Earth" initiative will be implemented across Sindh, with a particular focus on Tharparkar. This large-scale project will involve citizens, corporations, and communities in planting and nurturing trees, contributing to a greener Pakistan.

The Cool the Earth Programme is a massive participatory tree plantation initiative, launched by the PVDP with support from the corporate sector, local communities, technical institutions and the Sindh government.

The plantation drive will begin from Tharparkar and will cover the entire Sindh in the later stages. In this programme, citizens and corporate entities will pledge and sponsor trees, the community will water and nurture them and PVDP will manage the nurseries, training, tree plantation and maintenance operations.

The target is to plant and nurture one million trees in two years.

The launching event opened with a warm welcome and introductory remarks by Dominic Stephen, Executive Director of PVDP, who emphasised the programme's vital role in climate action and community empowerment.

Consultant of the Cool the Earth Programme, Tanveer Arif, led the ceremony as moderator, providing an insightful overview of the programme’s goals and its significance for local communities.

He said the severe smog situation in central Punjab and recent devastating floods in southern parts of the country had shown that the climate emergency had started adversely impacting Pakistan with massive damages.

He said the unchecked expansion of urban areas at the cost of green cover and farmlands in the city suburbs had also seriously harmed the environment.

He said the community-led plantation was the way forward for Pakistan to restore ecological balance and protect environmental conditions in the country from further harm.

Arif told the audience that impoverished communities in Tharparkar would be given monetary incentives to become the driving force behind this plantation initiative to promote greenery in the semi-desert areas. He said a package involving economic benefits for the local communities to accelerate a plantation campaign in underprivileged rural areas was the best way to tackle the issues of desertification and environmental degradation in Pakistan.

He said PVDP Sindh was committed to working closely with communities, government agencies, and private sector partners to ensure the success of the "Cool the Earth" initiative. Arif told the audience that the programme empowers communities by providing training and resources to participate actively in tree plantation and maintenance.