From Thar to UNCCD COP17: Pakistan’s dryland restoration experience takes global stage

KARACHI: Pakistan’s experience in restoring degraded drylands was showcased at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, with Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company’s Thar Million Trees campaign highlighted as an example of large-scale land restoration and environmental conservation in the country.

The conference brought together leaders from governments, corporate experts, scientists, and civil society to explore solutions to land degradation and drought, while recognizing that land restoration can also contribute to reducing displacement, instability and threats to human security.

SECMC Chief Executive Officer Amir Iqbal joined the international business and environmental leaders in a discussion focused on integrating land restoration and biodiversity conservation into corporate strategies.

The high-level discussion titled “Leading the Land Transition: CEOs Driving Nature-Positive Business,” was moderated by Khalid Al Othman, President of Imar Engineering Consultants, and included Randolph Koppa, Chairman of the Trade and Development Bank of Mongolia; Salina Abraham, Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor at Landscape Alliance and Lead of the Thrivelands Programme; and He Yeyun, Vice Secretary of the China Desertification Control and Sand Industry Society and Director of International Department and Operation Management at the China Green Carbon Foundation.

The Thar Million Trees campaign has also been featured in the IUCN report “Business for Nature: Private-Sector Solutions to Land Degradation and Desertification in Asian Drylands”, placing Thar’s restoration experience within the global conversation on sustainable land management.

Furthermore, SECMC have undertaken several sustainability initiatives alongside mining operations in Thar Block II. Through the TMT campaign, more than 1.37 million trees have been planted across 20 locations in the region while the company’s Green Park initiative includes a nursery capable of raising 100,000 saplings. Through bio-saline agriculture, the initiative has cultivated 70–100 tree species and transformed 165 acres of arid land into productive farmland.

At the conference, SECMC reaffirmed its commitment to the Business for Land (B4L) Call to Action, a private-sector pledge under the UNCCD supporting the restoration of 1.5 billion hectares of degraded land by 2030.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026