Six-year programme targets pollution, GHG emissions, and hazardous chemicals Pakistan has joined an international initiative alongside eight other countries to reduce the environmental impact of the fashion and construction industries. The six-year, $45 million programme aims to promote sustainable practices in supply chains, addressing pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and hazardous chemicals. The fashion and construction industries are among the top three contributors to global pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and biodiversity loss.
The building and construction sector is the largest consumer of chemicals, while textile production alone uses 0.58 kg of various chemicals for every 1 kg of fabric produced. The initiative, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), is part of the “Integrated Programme on Eliminating Hazardous Chemicals from Supply Chains.
” It seeks to drive transformational changes in the target sectors by focusing on regenerative design, resource-efficient production, responsible purchasing, and post-use collection practices. The programme has also secured an additional $295 million from other sources to maximize its impact, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). This ambitious programme will operate through nine projects in countries including Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Cambodia, India, Mongolia, Pakistan, and a global coordination project.
Approved by the GEF Council in June 2023, the country-specific project.