Transparency International Pakistan convened a high-level consultation with parliamentarians on February 17, 2026 in Islamabad to discuss advancing carbon markets governance and legislative readiness as Pakistan moves to operationalize Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
Professor Dr. Uzma Shujaat, Board of Trustees at TI Pakistan, opened the session by stressing that carbon markets can mobilize crucial climate finance and support low-emission development only if underpinned by robust governance, transparent oversight and parliamentary scrutiny to protect national and community interests.
TI Pakistan’s Executive Director Kashif Ali presented a legislative roadmap for parliamentarians that identifies four priority areas, including legal recognition of carbon credits as assets. He urged Parliament to enact a Carbon Markets Framework Act to define carbon credits, Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes and Verified Emission Reductions as intangible assets, clarify ownership rules, distinguish public, private and community-generated credits, and set their treatment in contracts, taxation and dispute resolution.
The roadmap also calls for a nationally mandated Monitoring, Reporting and Verification system and consolidated emissions baselines aligned with Article 6, together with codified benefit sharing and community safeguards that mandate Free, Prior and Informed Consent and robust grievance redress mechanisms for projects on public or communal land.
Hamid Sarfraz of Dev Consult outlined how Pakistan’s climate governance remains fragmented across federal and provincial tiers, with weak coordination, limited climate finance tracking and insufficient data integration. He highlighted the need for strengthened parliamentary oversight through mechanisms such as the Council of Common Interests and for integrated institutional mandates to enable effective implementation of NDC commitments.
UNEP-WCMC expert Hamza Rafay Butt noted Pakistan’s potential to mobilize carbon finance across energy, forestry, waste and agriculture, while warning that market credibility depends on consolidated emissions baselines, integrated data systems, domestic MRV capacity and transparent governance frameworks. He linked these technical readiness needs directly to the legislative priorities under discussion.
Legal analyst Syed Bulent Sohail emphasised that policy guidelines alone cannot deliver legal certainty, and that formal notification of carbon market rules is essential to reduce investor risk, bolster international credibility and safeguard community rights within Pakistan’s legal framework.
Parliamentarians from both the National Assembly and Senate Standing Committees on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination expressed strong interest in an Act of Parliament on carbon markets aligned with national priorities and Article 6. Members pledged to pursue the issue through individual bills, resolutions and parliamentary oversight, and called for transparent data and reporting systems with clear federal-provincial coordination.
Honorable Munaza Hassan, Chairperson of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, closed the consultation by reaffirming Parliament’s central role in providing the statutory backbone for carbon markets and ensuring climate finance supports national development and community priorities. She welcomed continued engagement with Transparency International Pakistan to sensitize lawmakers on these issues.
Participants concluded that Pakistan is entering a formative phase in carbon markets where legislative clarity, institutional coordination, transparent systems and inclusive governance will determine the country’s ability to mobilize international climate finance and deliver equitable benefits to communities.
