ISLAMABAD: The federal government expects to collect Rs50 billion through the Climate Support Levy during fiscal year 2026-27, while the total allocation for the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination stands at about Rs4.96 billion, including both current and development spending.
The budget documents show that the ministry has been allocated Rs2.48 billion for development projects under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and another Rs2.48 billion for current expenditure, taking its total federal allocation to nearly Rs5 billion for the coming fiscal year.
The development allocation has increased slightly from the revised PSDP allocation of Rs2.30 billion in the outgoing fiscal year to Rs2.48 billion for 2026-27.
A review of PSDP documents shows that the overwhelming share of development spending will go to a single project.
The Up-scaling of Green Pakistan Programme, previously known as the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, has been allocated Rs2.34 billion, accounting for almost 94 per cent of the ministry’s entire development budget.
The project is part of a broader afforestation initiative aimed at increasing forest cover and supporting environmental conservation efforts across the country.
By comparison, several other climate-related initiatives have received substantially smaller allocations.
The Green Skills for Sustainable Development project, which aims to promote green entrepreneurship and innovation, has been allocated Rs51.6 million. Another Rs50 million has been earmarked for the preparation of a National Urban Strategy and development of guidelines to reduce the impacts of floods, droughts, climate disasters and other environmental risks in urban areas.
Similarly, Rs40.7 million has been allocated for strengthening the technical capacities of the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination.
The current expenditure budget of Rs2.48 billion includes Rs1.48 billion for grants and subsidies, Rs619 million for operating expenses, Rs232 million for employee-related expenditures and Rs121 million for physical assets.
The federal budget also shows that environment protection remains a relatively small component of overall federal spending. The Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Division’s development allocation of Rs2.48 billion represents less than one quarter of one percent of the federal PSDP of Rs1 trillion approved for fiscal year 2026-27.
At the same time, the government expects to collect Rs50 billion through the Climate Support Levy, which has emerged as one of the notable new revenue measures in the federal budget.
The allocations come as Pakistan continues to face increasing climate-related challenges, including extreme heat events, water scarcity, urban flooding, droughts and other weather-related emergencies.
The country remains among the nations considered highly vulnerable to climate change despite contributing only a small share of global greenhouse gas emissions. Budget documents indicate that federal climate spending in 2026-27 will remain largely focused on the Green Pakistan Programme, while relatively smaller allocations have been made for climate planning, institutional strengthening, urban resilience and capacity-building initiatives.
The PSDP documents also show that the total cost of ongoing climate-related projects under the ministry exceeds Rs123 billion, while substantial funding will still be required in coming years to complete ongoing schemes.
With the government expecting to raise Rs50 billion through the Climate Support Levy and allocating nearly Rs5 billion to the climate ministry, the 2026-27 budget places renewed attention on climate financing while continuing to channel most development spending through the country’s flagship afforestation programme.
