Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb has reaffirmed the government's resolve to prioritize climate change and population management within Pakistan's economic and fiscal planning.

He was speaking at the 28th Sustainable Development Conference organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute in Islamabad today.

He noted that despite global uncertainty, the world economy continues to show remarkable resilience.

Muhammad Aurangzeb underlined that countries like Pakistan must continue to build strong fiscal and external buffers to manage potential external shocks amid rising protectionism and supply chain realignments.

He referred to the creation of the Pakistan Crypto Council and the establishment of the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, which is being legislated through Parliament.

He reaffirmed that Pakistan's approach to virtual assets and blockchain technology will remain firmly aligned with the country's specific risk profile and regulatory priorities, including safeguards against capital flight, money laundering, and investor suitability.

The Minister said Pakistan has secured significant multilateral support, including 1.3 billion dollars from the IMF under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, 500 million dollars from the Asian Development Bank, and a 10-year Country Partnership Framework with the World Bank Group worth 2 billion dollars annually, focused primarily on climate change and population.

He stressed that Pakistan must focus on mobilizing its own resources, private capital, and market-based mechanisms such as green bonds and carbon markets.

The Minister also appreciated innovative private sector initiatives such as Acumen's 90 million dollars Climate Action Fund and Sindh's pioneering mangrove carbon credit project, urging that these be replicated and scaled up nationwide.

He highlighted the growing potential for debt-for-nature swaps and called for enhanced technical capacity to design, structure, and monitor bankable, investable climate projects meeting international standards.

He underscored the vital role of finance ministries in mainstreaming climate action, observing that if climate priorities are not integrated into national budgets, they cannot become national policy.