Decentralization of Environmental Governance in Pakistan and its Impact on Sustainable Development

Abstract

Environmental governance is a key instrument towards sustainable development that requires full information, sound decision-making procedures, implementation of rules and their execution according to internationally accepted standards. While Pakistan has made progress in devising legislations and laws to manage major environmental issues, it is still not as close to its target of achieving sustainable development despite several decades of efforts at environmental regulation and governance. This paper evaluates the post-18th Amendment scenario regarding the achievement of sustainable environment through better environmental governance in Pakistan. The country is facing serious environmental challenges of ever-increasing environmental pollution, losing fertile lands, depleting fragile water resources and poor human development. Pakistan ranks 161 among 192 countries regarding its Human Development Index (HDI) because of its dismal performance in the fields of education, health, and income. In 2022, Pakistan’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) ranking was 176th among 180 countries with a score of 24.6. Despite decentralization efforts, Pakistan has failed to achieve considerable improvement in environmental governance and management. To address these issues, there is a need to review the pros and cons of the 18th Amendment in the constitution of Pakistan objectively and modify it if needed. To facilitate inter-provincial and inter-sectoral coordination, different institutions, and statutory bodies relevant to environmental governance formed after the 18th Amendment should be made functional to devise comprehensive and collaborative strategies for sustainable development.