Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated the Miyawaki urban forest in Lahore on Monday as part of a monsoon drive under the 10 Billion Tree Tsunami project.

Speaking on the occasion, Imran said that Pakistan has made efforts to address the challenges of global warming and climate change.

The premier stated that Miyawaki technique will help in lowering pollution and increasing forest cover. The PM highlighted that deforestation is rapidly increasing in Pakistan and, as part of efforts to solve the problem, the country has adopted the Miyawaki technique to make forests grow faster.

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He recalled that barren areas have been transformed into lush, green areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where the government undertook the Billion Tree Tsunami initiative.

The Miyawaki forest has been developed over 100 kanals with a total of 165,000 plants which will grow ten times quicker than a normal forest owing to the unique Miyawaki technique. Pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, it is a unique technique that helps build native forests 10 times faster and 30 times denser.

Under the approach, dozens of native species are planted in the same area, close to each other, which ensures that the plants receive sunlight only from the top, and grow upwards than sideways.

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It uses specialised land preparation as well as indigenous varieties with varying growth rates to produce fast-growing urban forests.