Navid Miraj & Shahid Qureshi
ISLAMABAD: The Governments of Pakistan and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia on Friday announced to setup a park in Islamabad next month to enhance fraternity and brotherhood between the two countries.
The announcement was made during a press briefing jointly addressed by Special Envoy and Ambassador of Ethiopia to Pakistan, Jemal Beker Abdula, Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Romina Khursheed Alam and Chairman of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) Muhammad Ali Randhawa at Ethiopia Embassy in Islamabad.
The briefing was followed by a tree plantation ceremony which was aimed at contributing to Ethiopia’s record-breaking program of planting 600 million seedlings in one day under the internationally recognized Green Legacy Initiative of Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
People from all walks of life including diplomatic community, government officials, academicians, religious and business fraternity, civil society, youth and media were present on the occasion and planted saplings of fruits, vegetables and other species under the Green Legacy Initiative.
Ambassador Jemal Beker Abdula addressing the press briefing expressed gratitude to the government and the people of Pakistan for contributing to 600 million tree plantation programmes of the Government of Ethiopia.
The Ambassador noted that under the Green Legacy Initiative programme not only trees were planted across Pakistan, but also Ethio-Pakistan Fraternity Parks and Enclaves have also been established.
“Climate Change is no more a buzzword rather it is a reality and for that matter we all have to join our forces to deal with the looming threat which is taking more lives than any other global crises,” said the Ambassador while announcing the launch of the 2nd round of Ethio-Pakistan Fraternity under the Green Legacy Initiative programme in Pakistan.
He said that a dedicated park for Ethiopia-Pakistan friendship was being established in Islamabad in cooperation with the Climate Change Ministry and the CDA.
Coordinator the Prime Minister on Climate Change Romina Khursheed said she and the Ambassador of Ethiopia initiated a cooperation in areas of climate change and sustainable development goals since 2022.
She praised the launch of Ethio-Pakistan Fraternity Programme last year through a collaboration between her office and the Ethiopian Embassy Islamabad under the Green Legacy Initiative of Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
“This Green Legacy initiative stands as beacon of hope for the world,” she said, adding that Pakistan was looking forward to learn from the best practices of Ethiopia.
She went on to say the government of Pakistan was also conducting the Green Pakistan programme which was launched under the leadership of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and received international recognition.
The CDA Chairman on the occasion appreciated Ethiopia Ambassador Jemal Beker for his efforts to tackle climate change which needed collective efforts for being an international problem. He said the CDA would fully cooperate with the Ethiopian Embassy for promoting the green initiative.
