Firstly, I possess extensive governance experience with a strategic knowledge of IUCN. IUCN is a body with unique strengths but also an organisation with immense complexity which, for effective governance, has to be grasped and understood. My understating of IUCN has developed over years serving at different tiers, starting at the bottom from chairing the members’ national committee to Council membership to two terms as Vice President. Also, I have had the exposure across its wide ranging strategic functions from serving on committees on governance (GCC), finance (FAC), congress preparations (CPC) and selection of the DG (DGSC) as well as taking up the challenge of presiding over Council meetings and the passionately driven members’ assembly sessions. All this has kept me actively involved with strategic directions of IUCN while keeping me abreast of the prevailing challenges and allowed me to develop a clear vision for its future progression.
Secondly I offer a capability of overseeing policy formulation with an influential global outreach. Having served in national parliament, country climate negotiations and the federal cabinet twice (including current serving term), I would be able to bring a wealth of global influence and highest level network connections to the access and benefit of IUCN. I also bring to the table a unique skill set of not only overseeing diverse policy development, ranging from wildlife to national parks to carbon markets to electric vehicles, but also delivering them on the ground. Moreover, having led the Pakistan country delegation at various forums including COP meetings, UNEA forum and serving as the Chairman of the G77/China negotiating group, I possess solid multi-lateral experience with the ability to facilitate high level access to governments and INGOs for policy influencing and profile enhancement of IUCN.
Thirdly, I have a passionate commitment to conservation along with an in-depth understanding of its challenges. My solid theoretical grounding (McGill/Oxford) is balanced with a practical experience of planning, managing and delivering conservation successes on the ground (Green Growth Initiative/Billion Tree Tsunami/5 point Green Agenda) as well as negotiating these issues through intricate multilateral processes and negotiations. In addition, the ability to leverage this knowledge base to influence behaviour change towards a “green” direction- has been the hallmark of my career and will certainly be an asset for IUCN which strives to do this at the global level.
Finally, I can offer IUCN a practical knowledge of developing and delivering innovative “Green” financing. I have managed to not only increase the Government financing for our Ministry 16 fold but have also overseen the increased access to concessionary global finance for our Ministry (now reaching U$500 mln) over the past year. This has been achieved through development of innovative “green” financing mechanisms such as the “Eco-system Restoration Fund” (ERF). This ability for “out of the box” thinking is something which, as President, I can leverage for IUCN to attract innovative avenues of financing. With this useful background and diverse governance experience I believe I am well suited to effectively contribute to IUCN’s governance and future leadership in conservation.
Valuing and respecting nature is central to the philosophy of IUCN. This has also been the umbilical cord binding my career progression to IUCN as we partnered on a diverse range of conservation activities. It has been an association of passion as we collaborated on a diverse range of initiatives which included rescuing and trans-locating a snow leopard cub in the northern areas of Pakistan, reviving the dwindling populations of blind dolphins, markhors and sea turtles and partnering to restore the vanishing mangroves along the coastline of Pakistan. In time, as my career progressed from a NGO researcher to a political policy practitioner, this partnership also graduated to initiatives with a much larger scope such as the development and implementation of the landmark Green Growth Initiative in KPK province, planning and executing the “Billion Trees Tsunami” afforestation as well as working on the, ongoing, country wide “Recharge Pakistan” project aimed at restoring wetland ecosystems as well as recharging ground water aquifers. All these collaborative engagements, have reinforced my belief in the value and worth of IUCN as well as the fact that nature based solutions work. They not only create a harmonious balance of nature with development but also provide a pay back through green jobs and unforeseen political dividends – which in turn has helped me to galvanize a national “green agenda” and inculcate it into a political movement through a mainstream political party. These continuing diverse experiences make me a “natural ally” to serve IUCN.
