Nature-based climate adaptation in Pakistan: A case study of the recharge Pakistan project
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71085/sss.04.02.308Keywords:
Climate Adaptation, Nature-based Solutions, Ecosystem-based Adaptation, Recharge Pakistan Project, Flood management, Water resources, Community resilience, Policy IntegrationAbstract
This study explores nature-based solutions (NbS) and ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) to climate resilience in Pakistan in the Indus Basin with special reference to the Recharge Pakistan Project. The aim is to evaluate the functioning of nature-based solutions NbS and ecosystem-based adaptation EbA approaches in particular through the Recharge Pakistan Project thus to minimize the climate regressions and to enhance the water management by involving large-scale ecological restoration and green infrastructure. The paper adopts a case study and mixed methodology which integrates both qualitative and quantitative data examines the project data, as well as policy reports, websites, articles and data provided by other publication houses in order to analyze the environmental and socio-economic consequences. The central concern and discussion of the paper is efficiency and scalability of NbS compared to traditional infrastructure and has emphasized challenges such as technical capability, funding and institutional impediments. The paper reveals that NbS when coupled with community and policy integration considerably reduce risks of flooding, increase ground water recharge and improve livelihoods. The paper comes to the conclusion that NbS provide a sustainable pathway of climate adaptation in Pakistan.
Downloads
References
Accelerating Green and Climate Resilient Financing in Pakistan. (2023). Retrieved from Growth Gateway: https://growthgateway.campaign.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/138/2023/11/231120_Accelerating_Green_Climate_Financing_Report_vFinal-003.pdf
Ahmad, N. (2024). Recharge Pakistan: A transformational approach to climate adaptation and flood risk management.
Anderson, C. C., Renaud, F. G., Hanscomb, S., & Gonzalez-Ollauri, A. (2022). Green, hybrid, or grey disaster risk reduction measures: what shapes public preferences for nature-based solutions? Journal of Environmental Management, 310, 114727.
Asad, S. A. (2016). The vulnerability of Pakistan’s water sector to the impacts of climate change. Retrieved from UNDP Pakistan: https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/migration/pk/Report.pdf
Aslam, M. (2018). Flood management current state, challenges and prospects in Pakistan: A review. Mehran University Research Journal of Engineering & Technology, 37(2), 297-314.
Bhatti, A.B. (2025). Nature-based solutions for climate resilience in Pakistan. https://agrieconomist.com/nature-based-solutions-for-climate-resilience-in-pakistan
Johnson, F., & Manikandan, K. (2024). Impact of climate change on water scarcity in Pakistan. Journal of Water and Climate Change, 15(8), 3602-3615.
Khan, Q. A., Jan, A., Iram, S., Haider, I., Badshah, A., Khan, A., ... & Verma, R. (2024). Impact of 2022 flood on socio-economic and health status of people residing in flood-stricken areas of Pakistan: a cross-sectional survey. Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 86(11), 6465-6471.
Khan, Z. U., Javed, S., & Akhtar, M. N, Orakzai,J,K, & Islam, M. U. (2024). Climate change and its implications for Pakistan. Khyber Journal of Public Policy, 3(4) Winter, 134-169
Khattar, U.A. (2024). Can nature-based solutions protect Pakistan from climate crisis? Retrieved from https://thefridaytimes.com/18-Oct-2024/can-nature-based-solutions-protect-pakistan-from-climate-crisis
Kirsch, T. D., Wadhwani, C., Sauer, L., Doocy, S., & Catlett, C. (2012). Impact of the 2010 Pakistan floods on rural and urban populations at six months. PLoS Currents Disasters, 4, e4fdfb212d2432. Retrieved from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3441151/
Mansoor, S. (2025). Pakistan’s Water Security Crisis: Challenges and the Case for Integrated Water Resource Management. NUST Journal of International Peace & Stability, 30-47.
Nature-based solutions for water: The United Nations World Water Development Report 2018 – Primer. (2018). Retrieved from UNEP-DHI: https://www.unepdhi.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/WEB_UNEP-DHI_NBS-PRIMER-2018-2.pdf
New report from Pakistan highlights the potential of a community-led approach to climate adaptation. (2025). Retrieved from IUCN: https://iucn.org/story/202502/new-report-pakistan-highlights-potential-community-led-approach-climate-adaptation
Pakistan faces $30b loss after floods. (2024). Retrieved from The Express Tribune: https://tribune.com.pk/story/2494863/pakistan-faces-30b-loss-after-floods
Pakistan: First Review Under the Extended Arrangement Under the Extended Fund Facility. (2025). Retrieved from International Monetary Fund: https://www.elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/002/2025/109/article-A003-en.xml
Policy brief: Water governance in Pakistan. (2025). Accountability Lab Pakistan. Retrieved from Accountability Lab: https://pakistan.accountabilitylab.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Policy-Brief-English-Water-Governance-in-Pakistan.pdf
Poverty impacts of Pakistan flood 2022. (2023). Retrieved from Prevention Web: https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/poverty-impacts-pakistan-flood-2022
Qureshi, A. S. (2011). Managing floods in Pakistan: From Structural to non-structural measures. In Symposium on “Emerging Phenomenon of Untimely Rains/Floods-2011 in Pakistan (pp. 107-114).
Rasheed, M. I., Naseer, M. A., Abbas, A., & Ahmad, M. (2023). Innovative Technologies and Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in Pakistan. Journal of Asian Development Studies, 12(3), 1414-1421.
Recharge Pakistan. (2023). Retrieved from WWF-Pakistan: https://www.wwfpak.org/our_work_/recharge_pakistan_/
Recharge Pakistan (2024). Retrievd from WWF: https://www.worldwildlife.org/projects/recharge-pakistan
Recharge Pakistan Leads Paradigm Shift Towards Ecosystem-Based Adaptation and Nature-Based Solutions at COP29. (2024). Retrieved from WWF: https://www.wwfbhutan.org.bt/?388957%2FRecharge-Pakistan-Leads-Paradigm-Shift-Towards-Ecosystem-Based-Adaptation-and-Nature-Based-Solutions-at-COP29
Recharge Pakistan project receives $77.8 million funding boost from the Green Climate Fund, United States Agency for International Development, The Coca-Cola Foundation, and World Wildlife Fund. (2023). Retrieved from World Wildlife Fund: https://www.worldwildlife.org/press-releases/recharge-pakistan-project-receives-77-8-million-funding-boost-from-the-green-climate-fund-united-states-agency-for-international-development-the-coca-cola-foundation-and-world-wildlife-fund
Recharge Pakistan: Building Pakistan’s resilience to climate change through ecosystem-based adaptation for integrated flood risk management. (2023). Retrieved from Green Climate Fund.: https://www.greenclimate.fund/project/fp207
Seddon, N., et al. (2020). Understanding the value and limits of nature-based solutions to climate change and other global challenges. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 375(1794), 20190120.
Soni, L., Iqbal, A., Waheed, F., Shah, A. A., & Akbar, N. (2025). Challenges and considerations of applying nature-based solutions for future mega-cities: Implications for Karachi as a Sponge City. Human Settlements and Sustainability, 1(1), 50-61.
Special section 2: Pakistan: Flood Impact Assessment. (2011). Pakistan Economic Survey 2010–11. Retrieved from Finance Division, Government of Pakistan: https://www.finance.gov.pk/survey/chapter_11/Special%20Section_2.pdf
Syed, F. Z., Awan, M. W., & Mumtaz, T. (2024). Environmental governance and policy implementation in Pakistan: Assessing Institutional capacities and challenges. Journal of Development and Social Sciences, 5(2), 407-419.
What is Recharge Pakistan? (2024). Retrieved from Matrix Mag: https://matrixmag.com/what-is-recharge-pakistan/.
Downloads
Published
Data Availability Statement
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
.png)
