KARACHI (PRESS RELEASE)
PTCL, in collaboration with WWF-Pakistan, will be part of a tree plantation ground-breaking ceremony, whereby seeds will be planted by local community members at Miani Hor, Lasbela District, Balochistan on 2nd October 2018.
PTCL & WWF-Pakistan have recently signed an agreement for planting 200,000 mangrove seeds in Balochistan, as part of the conservation organizations nationwide tree plantation campaign, called Rung Do.
On the occasion, Syed Mazhar Hussain, Chief Human Resources Officer, PTCL, stated that “PTCL being the largest telecommunication company in Pakistan, takes responsibility to address the serious issue of deforestation in the country. We are happy to partner with WWF on this significant initiative and are confident on their ability to identify the most suitable landscape and plant variety that will make a substantial difference to the environment. We are also proud to involve the local community in our plantation drive, as this will add more value and ownership from the local communities.”
Rab Nawaz, Senior Director Programmes, WWF-Pakistan stated, “Pakistan is amongst the top ten countries affected by climate change, where citizens can help by planting one tree at a time. Through this campaign, WWF-Pakistan aims to contribute to the Bonn Challenge, a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land into restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030. PTCL’s support for the plantation of 200,000 mangroves is the largest commitment from corporate sector so far.”
Between 2000 and 2010, Pakistan lost an average of approximately 43,000 hectares of forests (equivalent to half the size of Islamabad) every year. With only 2% forest cover remaining, the country’s deforestation rate is the highest in Asia and is well below the recommended cover of 25%. Therefore, in order to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change, regulate water cycles and increase green cover across the country, WWF-Pakistan has pledged to plant a total of 1.4 million trees by August 2019 through active participation of different stakeholders, local communities and passionate individuals along with corporate organizations such as PTCL.
PTCL is one of the pioneer organizations to extend its support for the ‘Rung Do’ campaign. As part of this cause, PTCL launched the campaign song by ‘Call the Band’ at the Independence Day celebrations held at its Headquarters in Islamabad.
PTCL strongly believes that private sector, in collaboration with the local communities, need to play a major role in addressing the nation’s environmental issues. Being a national ICT provider, the company motivates its employees to be part of this plantation drive to make Pakistan greener and inspire its communities and civil society.