Last updated: April 2023
As part of the Green Pakistan Programme (GPP), the Ministry of Environment of Pakistan initiated a plantation drive on the Margalla Hills, threatened by climate change, droughts, floods and deforestation. Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP) is a national park of Pakistan located in the capital city, Islamabad. It was established in the 1980s with a total area of about 173 square kilometres constituting Margalla Hills, Shakarparian Park, Rawal Lake and the Cultural Complex (2,5). The primary purpose of GPP was to protect the environment and revive forests, as Pakistan is a forest-deficient country having 5.01 per cent of its total area under forest cover. The park is under the supervision of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) which ensures the management, maintenance and preservation of wildlife and other species in the park vicinity. The campaign was set to take place over 5 years between 2017-2022. Furthermore, as part of the same program, an awareness campaign was started to generate knowledge about plants and make Islamabad green and beautiful. Thousands of people visit the national park daily to enjoy the natural environment and healthy recreational facilities and relax by looking at the serene landscape and natural viewpoints of the city visible from the different trails of the park. (1,2,3,4,5)
Margalla Hills National Park
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1771477/rains-add-margalla-hills-beauty
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Parks and urban forests
- Large urban parks or forests
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Climate change mitigation
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Habitat and biodiversity conservation
- Green space creation and/or management
- Water management (SDG 6)
- Flood protection
- Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
- Environmental education
Focus
Creation of new green areas, Protection of natural ecosystems, Knowledge creation and awareness raising, Monitoring and maintenance of habitats and/or biodiversity
Project objectives
The project aimed for the following:
- To conserve the habitat of birds, mammals and other species in Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP).
- To respond to various threats including climate change, droughts, floods and deforestation.
- To create awareness among people about tree plantation.
- To provide carbon sequestration, water regulation, soil fertility regulation and habitat for biodiversity.
- To launch a comprehensive drive for the cleanliness of the MHNP in collaboration with civil society, students and environmentalists.
- To facilitate the transition towards environmentally resilient Pakistan by mainstreaming notions of adaptation and mitigation through ecologically targeted initiatives covering afforestation, biodiversity conservation enabling policy environment. ( 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
Implementation activities
As part of the action the following were implemented since 2017:
For the conservation of natural habitat and preservation of the national park alien invasive species were removed and replaced with indigenous plants specific to the area. The IWMB protection team was involved in the removal of Lantana along trails 3, 5 and 6 of the park, one by one. Lantana species have been removed from the National Park and replaced by local plants like, pine, wild pomegranate and Kachnar etc. Similarly to raise awareness of the importance of indigenous trees for local ecosystems and to offer support to the Government of Pakistan’s vision of the “Clean and Green Pakistan Programme” Islamabad Wildlife Management Board with the collaboration of University students and Khushaali Micro Finance Bank also took part in the action through a cleanliness drive (from time to time in collaboration with civil society and students to volunteer in cleaning the park surroundings). The main aim of the community relations program is to establish and maintain an understanding with Margallah Hills National Park's local communities (32 villages) to conserve and manage Park's natural resources and raise their living conditions. From July 2018 to June 2019, under the community relations program, area identification, community resource person selection, village committee formation, community awareness sessions and encroachment identification have been carried out. In 2017, IWMB's cleanliness drive was along Trail 5 and 6 which about 40-50 volunteers including boys, girls and families joined. Since 2017, 500,000 trees were planted at the Margalla Hills. (3,6)
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Implement measures that prevent/manage desertification, soil erosion and landslides
- Implement solutions to capture/store water to increase its availability and prevent shortages from droughts
- Increase the use of climate-resilient plant species (resistant to drought, fire, and pests)
- Other
Climate change mitigation:
- Increase green urban nature for carbon storage (wetlands, tree cover)
- Raise public awareness of behaviours, lifestyle and cultural changes with mitigation potential
Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities
Biodiversity conservation:
- Protect and enhance urban habitats
- Preserve and strengthen existing habitats and ecosystems
- Protect species
- Undertake specific measures to protect species
- Control and clean invasive alien species
- Means for conservation governance
- Raise public awareness
- Public engagement
Main beneficiaries
- National-level government
- Citizens or community groups
- Young people and children
Governance
Management set-up
- Co-governance with government and non-government actors
Type of initiating organisation
- National government
- Local government/municipality
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Crowd-sourcing/Crowd-funding/Participatory budget
- Dissemination of information and education
- Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
The Margalla Hills National Park is under the supervision of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) which foresees the management, and maintenance of the park where Capital Development Authority (CDA) ensures the development work in the city and has been involved in the development related activities apart from the tree plantation. Hence, Islamabad Wildlife Management Board and City Development Authority are the main government organizations involved in it. Public participation has been ensured in this project by involving the general public in tree plantation. It has involved multiple organizations including Khushhali Microfinance Bank and Air University in tree plantation activities in the MHNP. (1,2,3,4,5,6)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
No
... a national policy or strategy?
Yes
(The National Forest Policy of 2015, the National Food Security Policy- of 2018, and draft National Wildlife Policy of 2018, the National Climate Change Policy of 2012, and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan were mentioned. (7))
... a local policy or strategy?
Yes
(The intervention responded to the Green Pakistan Programme (GPP) and the Green Islamabad campaign. (1,3))
Financing
Total cost
More than €4,000,000
Source(s) of funding
- Public local authority budget
- Public national budget
- Public regional budget
Type of funding
- Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Type of non-financial contribution
- Provision of land
- Provision of labour
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
- Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services)
- Citizens (e.g. volunteering)
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Climate change
- Enhanced carbon sequestration
- Environmental quality
- Improved soil quality
- Green space and habitat
- Increased green space area
- Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
- Increased number of species present
- Improved prevention or control of invasive alien species
Economic impacts
- Unknown
Socio-cultural impacts
- Social justice and cohesion
- Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
- Health and wellbeing
- Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Education
- Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Type of reported impacts
Expected impacts, Achieved impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Yes
Presence of indicators used in reporting
Yes
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
Yes
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
References
1. The Express Tribune. (2018). Reforestation: Plantation drive kicks off in Margalla Hills. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
2. Daily Times. (2021). Tree plantation drive launched at Margalla hills. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
3. Dunya. (2018). Islamabad: Door-to-door tree plantation campaign kicks off. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
4. The Express Tribune. (2018). Rains add to Margalla Hills’ beauty. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
5. Forestrypedia (2018), An Introduction to Green Pakistan Programme (GPP), Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
6. Government of Pakistan Ministry of Climate Change Islamabad (2019), Year Book (reporting for Green Pakistan Programme), Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
7. Ministry of Climate Change - Pakistan (2019), Pakistan’s Sixth National Report to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
2. Daily Times. (2021). Tree plantation drive launched at Margalla hills. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
3. Dunya. (2018). Islamabad: Door-to-door tree plantation campaign kicks off. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
4. The Express Tribune. (2018). Rains add to Margalla Hills’ beauty. Available at: Source link (Accessed: January 30, 2023)
5. Forestrypedia (2018), An Introduction to Green Pakistan Programme (GPP), Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
6. Government of Pakistan Ministry of Climate Change Islamabad (2019), Year Book (reporting for Green Pakistan Programme), Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
7. Ministry of Climate Change - Pakistan (2019), Pakistan’s Sixth National Report to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, Available at: Source link (Accessed: April 3, 2023)
Margalla Hills National Park
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1641257/reforestation-plantation-drive-kicks-off-margalla-hills
Barking Dear in Margalla Hills Trail 5
https://www.facebook.com/MargallaTrails/
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the "NBS 2022" UNA Asian extension project funded by the Asia-Europe Foundation.