ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Dr Musadik Malik has called for an urgent shift from lengthy procedures and development jargon to practical, community-based action to address the challenges faced by Pakistan’s climate-vulnerable cities and poor communities.
He made these remarks during a meeting with Ms Oddy Angelo, a UN-Habitat officer from Bolivia, where discussions focused on urban development, climate resilience, water and sanitation, flood management and interventions for vulnerable communities.
Dr Malik expressed concern over delays in development projects, stressing that policy work and international cooperation must ultimately translate into action on the ground.
“We need impactful work. Bring effective policy input, we will collaborate and get it done,” the minister said, urging stakeholders to reduce unnecessary delays and focus on implementation.
He said Pakistan needed practical solutions rather than more jargon, particularly for communities facing contaminated water, flooding, inadequate sanitation and poor urban infrastructure.
“One project can change the lives of many,” he said, calling for projects that are community-based, self-sustaining and capable of being replicated across the country.
The minister observed that considerable good work had already been undertaken by various institutions and development partners, but much of it remained scattered and its impact had not been sufficiently demonstrated. He said the priority should be to identify successful interventions, demonstrate their results and scale them up into initiatives that could eventually become part of a national agenda.
Dr Malik highlighted the need for practical interventions such as water treatment plants in areas with contaminated water, flood-resilience projects and other basic urban services in vulnerable communities.
He also emphasised the need to move the National Urban Strategy rapidly from policy to implementation, calling for stronger coordination among government institutions, UN agencies, development partners, local authorities and communities.
The minister proposed launching a business and innovation idea competition for Pakistan’s youth, inviting solutions in areas including climate change, public safety, vulnerable cities, flood management, technology, invention, water and sanitation and green industry.
He said Pakistan’s young people should be given an opportunity to turn creative ideas into practical solutions to national problems.
The meeting also emphasised that development resources must ultimately reach communities and that local populations should have a meaningful role in designing and sustaining projects.
Dr Malik said Pakistan did not lack ideas or talent; what was required was to move faster from ideas to implementation, from isolated projects to scalable models, and from policy discussions to solutions that improve people’s lives.
He reiterated that the measure of development should be simple: less delay, more delivery and tangible improvement for vulnerable communities.
