From between July 2024 to June 2025, over 100 million people across 22 cities in Pakistan did not experience a single day of clean air.

Fair Finance Pakistan’s latest online petition released in September 2025 calls on the Parliament of Pakistan for:

Enforcement of the constitutional right to clean air

Immediate public disclosure of air quality data in the public domain.

Sign the Petition to make clean air a guaranteed reality: https://www.change.org/CleanAirforPakistan

Clean air is not simply an environmental concern—it is a constitutional right, enshrined under Article 9A of Pakistan’s Constitution.

Article 9A: Every person shall be entitled to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.

26th Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, the Constitution Act, 2024, passed on October 21, 2024

Confronted with one of the most pressing public health and climate risks of our time—air pollution—our journey takes on even greater urgency. Finance can no longer remain neutral. Financial institutions must go beyond conventional project financing to embed public health and environmental responsibility into their portfolios.

By embedding air pollution considerations into the financial sector’s risk assessment frameworks, finance can be positioned as a proactive enabler of pollution mitigation, in line with emerging global ESG and sustainable finance standards.

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Sign the Petition to make clean air a guaranteed reality for everyone.

#Airpollution #CleanAir #UNGA25 #Finance #ConstitutionalRight

December 8 – 11, 2025 | Islamabad

Air pollution is Asia’s top public health emergency — with 𝟫𝟫% of people breathing toxic air daily, driving millions of premature deaths, educational loss and deepening inequality. Beyond health, it fuels climate change and economic losses.

The Air Sensors International Conference – ASIC Pakistan Mitigation Series is co-organised by Fair Finance Pakistan and the UC Davis Air Quality Research Center convening business, finance, policymakers, academia, and communities to chart a shared roadmap linking clean air to net-zero and sustainable development goals.

Islamabad | December 8 – 11, 2025
Registration link: https://aqrc.ucdavis.edu/events
(𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑖𝑟𝑑 𝑟𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑛.)
Call for abstracts open until October 3, 2025.

This Mitigation Series marks the first pilot focused on mitigation in countries where air pollution is the top environmental threat. It leverages data-driven solutions to drive policy reform, innovative finance, and regional collaboration around breakthrough technologies for air pollution mitigation in Pakistan and beyond.

The edition focuses on the role of business and finance in driving air quality solutions—especially for communities most impacted by polluted air, through:

Targeted solutions to reduce pollution across Pakistan’s high-emission sectors & industrial-urban hotspots
Showcasing next-generation air sensors & industrial emissions-control technologies
Building a financial ecosystem where businesses actively address environmental risks & opportunities.

Through curated academic and policy sessions; innovative expo, ASIC Pakistan unites advanced research with policy leadership, and pioneers breakthrough approaches that address urgent climate and pollution challenges head-on.

What to Expect at ASIC Pakistan Mitigation Series

A high-impact conference tailored for decision-makers from government, industry, development banks, and civil society.

• Engage with expertly curated panels tackling Pakistan’s most urgent air pollution challenges—from clean finance and climate technology to industrial decarbonization, sustainable agriculture, clean mobility, and an equitable energy transition.
• Curated academic sessions presenting cutting-edge research to inform policy and investment decisions.
• Explore the Innovation Expo showcasing the latest technologies for air quality monitoring and emissions mitigation—abuilt for real-world applications.

Fair Finance Pakistan has partnered with the UC Davis Air Quality Research Center is a leading interdisciplinary center that brings together scientists, engineers, policy experts, and community stakeholders to address pressing air quality and atmospheric issues. ASIC is a premier global platform for experts advancing air quality, climate, and environmental sustainability.

On December 4, 2023, Fair Finance Pakistan (FFP) launched its first ever policy assessment of five top commercial banks in Pakistan with the support of Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and Profundo. 

Titled, Benchmarking the Sustainability Policies of Banks in Pakistan, the policy assessment evaluated Habib Bank Limited, Allied Bank, National Bank of Pakistan, Meezan Bank, and Muslim Commercial Bank across 10 thematic areas in the Fair Finance Guide International (FFGI) Methodology, including climate change, corruption, gender equality, human rights, labor rights, nature, arms, tax, transparency and accountability and financial consumer protection.  

According to the report, banks generally scored low on the themes assessed. The highest average scores are for “the themes of financial consumer protection, 4.62 out of 10, corruption, 3.18 out of 10, gender equality, 1.48 out of 10, and transparency and accountability, 1.08 out of 10.  For all the other themes, the average score for the five banks is inferior to 1 out of 10, which reveals a lack of public policies on most of the sustainability topics assessed.”

The policy assessment also offers key recommendations to create a more responsible and sustainable financial sector in Pakistan: 

• Banks should be encouraged to adopt comprehensive environmental policies encompassing nature preservation and climate change mitigation. 
• Banks should be encouraged to develop and implement gender-sensitive policies that promote diversity, inclusion, and equal opportunities to ensure gender equality. 
• In human rights and labor rights, the banks should be advocated to adopt clear policies on human rights and labor rights, including adherence to international standards. 
• For financial consumer protection, banks should have clear policies on the fair treatment of their customers and report concrete measures to ensure that customers are not discriminated against. 
• For transparency and accountability, banks should be encouraged to enhance transparency in their investments, including the clear documentation of risk control and accountability practices. 
• Banks should develop and disclose tax policies that promote transparency and compliance with tax regulations and ensure public disclosure of relevant financial components.  
• Banks should support the implementation of anti-corruption measures, including robust anti-bribery and anti-money laundering policies, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing. 
• It is strongly recommended that both regulatory authorities and civil society take proactive measures to monitor banks’ operations closely, ensuring genuine compliance and effective policy implementation, with the inaugural assessment serving as a valuable reference. 
• Fostering increased collaboration between banks and stakeholders, including regulators and civil society organizations. 

More Information: 

To read the full report, click here.  

Financial institutions have an immense impact on society. Hence, finance cannot be neutral and must take a wider role for societal good. In this context, Fair Finance Pakistan (FFP) conducted its first ever policy assessment of five leading commercial banks in Pakistan with the support of Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and Profundo to stimulate these FIs to promote social and institutional change. 

The five top commercial banks assessed were Habib Bank Limited, Allied Bank, National Bank of Pakistan, Meezan Bank and Muslim Commercial bank. They were assessed across ten thematic areas in the Fair Finance Guide International (FFGI) Methodology, including climate change, corruption, gender equality, human rights, labor rights, nature, arms, tax, transparency and accountability and financial consumer protection.  FFGI is a rigorous, internationally developed instrument to stimulate a race to the top among financial institutions as well as inform citizens. 

Session Overview 

On December 4, 2023, Fair Finance Pakistan (FFP) will launch its first ever policy assessment, “Benchmarking the Sustainability Policies of Banks in Pakistan” in Islamabad, Pakistan. The launch will feature two distinguished panel discussions: “Hype or Hope: Can ESG transform the World for Nature, Human Rights, Gender Right, Arms, and Corruption,” and “Now and Next: Repurposing Finance for Climate Change, Tax, Labour Rights, Transparency & Accountability, and Financial Consumer Protection.” 

The panel discussions will aim to discuss findings, insights, and recommendations from the policy assessment, which will serve as a valuable resource on the Pakistan’s progress in sustainable finance, with a special focus on the banking industry. The panel discussions will also facilitate discussions on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), and human rights standards of Pakistani banks.  

The launch aims to serve as a platform for civil society organizations (CSOs), academic institutions, and policy leaders to present innovative solutions and practical strategies aimed at fostering collaboration and driving change. It will also provide an opportunity for interactive problem-solving discussions among industry colleagues. 

Objectives  

• Highlight Fair Finance’s work involves policy rankings and a thorough, stringent methodology to evaluate the approach of FIs towards sustainability. 
• Share key findings, insights, and recommendations from an assessment on several banks, including Habib Bank, Allied Bank, Muslim Commercial Bank, Meezan Bank, and the National Bank of Pakistan. Discuss the financial system to aid the transition towards a more sustainable and inclusive economy in Pakistan. 

Speakers  

The policy launched will be moderated by Ume Laila Azhar, Executive Director, HomeNet; Mehmood Akhtar Cheema, Country Representative, IUCN Pakistan; Nadeem Iqbal, CEO, TheNetwork for Consumer Protection; and Asim Jaffry, Country Program Lead, Fair Finance Pakistan. Speakers will include Dr. Abid Aman Burki, Professor Emeritus, Lahore University of Management Sciences; Senator Farhatullah Babar; Bushra Shafique, Senior Joint Director, SME Housing and Sustainable Finance Department, State Bank of Pakistan; Mehmood Akhtar Cheema, Country Representative, IUCN Pakistan; Zafarullah Khan, Convener, Parliamentary Research Group; and Yong Ye, Country Director, Asian Development Bank on International Banks’ Day. Panellists will include Bram Joanknecht, Economic Justice Advocacy Lead, Oxfam Novib; D’Juan Sampson, Economic Officer, US Embassy Islamabad; Musarat Jabeen, Executive Director, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan; Hufrish R. Shroff, SVP– Divisional Head, Organization Effectiveness Division, National Bank of Pakistan; Farhan Ahmad, Head Corporate Affairs, Habib Bank Limited; Samar Ehsaan, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Economic Affairs Division; Zahid Latif, Chairman, Islamabad and Lahore Stock Exchange; Asif Khan, former program manager, Ozone Cell, Ministry of Environment, Government of Pakistan; Mukhtar Ahmed Ali, Executive Director, Center for Peace and Development Initiatives; Ume Laila Azhar, Executive Director, HomeNet; Dr. Imran Saqib Khalid, Director of Governance & Policy, WWF-Pakistan; Rizwan Chugtai, Division Head, EVP, Muslim Commercial Bank; Shah Nasir Khan, Head of UN Resident Coordinators Office; Umar Cheema, Investigative Journalist; Siraj Qadir, Group Head Technical Appraisal – Risk Management Group, Allied Bank Limited; Ashar Hasan Khan, Executive Vice President, Head Enterprise Risk Management & BCP, Meezan Bank Limited; Mir Shai Mazar Baloch, Director General Coordination, Senate of Pakistan; Saqib Rafiq, President, Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Hussain Jarwar, CEO, Indus Consortium; Juliette Laplane, Senior Sustainability Researcher, Profundo; as well as Nadeem Iqbal, CEO, TheNetwork for Consumer Protection. Chief guest remarks will be from Ashfaq Yousuf Tola, Former Minister of State, Ex Chairman, Reforms and Resource Mobilization Commission, Federal Board of Revenue. 

More Information 

To learn more about FFP’s work, click here. 

On 28th September 2021, the Government of Pakistan announced the approval of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights. Pakistan is now the first country in South Asia to have a National Action Plan aimed at preventing human rights violations resulting from business activity.

In this guest blog, Asim Jaffry, Program Lead of Fair Finance Pakistan, explores the growth in public-private partnerships across Asia and charts how the National Action Plan came into being.

In recent years, the private sector has begun to have a transformational impact on people’s lives, where it seems to have broadened its primary purpose from just making profits to creating social value. In other words, profit and purpose are converging. We have seen global examples of the private sector shouldering responsibilities often in states which have failed to deliver public services to its people. In fact over the last decade, the United Nations and donor agencies are paying increasing attention to how private sector development can be leveraged to support poverty reduction and sustainable, equitable and inclusive social and economic growth.

Public-private partnerships are on the rise across Asia because they align incentives between companies, the social sector and government. In its latest report, ‘Public-Private Partnerships for Social Good,’ the Centre for Asian Philanthropy and Society highlights a growing trend of governments, social sector and the private sector coming together to address complex societal needs in Asia.

There is growing realization among Pakistani civil society, as in the wider international community, that the capacity of the private sector must be utilized systematically through formal public–private partnerships to attain societal good and other development goals.

By clearly inviting the support of the private sector and civil society, and exploring each other’s wealth of information and insight, one can nurture innovative anti-poverty action led by a broader spectrum of agents. Making use of social development thinking is essential to effective private sector development work that is responsible, inclusive, and delivers sustainable benefits to poor people.

UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

In June 2011, in line with states’ duty to protect human rights, including their duty to protect against human rights abuse by third parties, including business enterprises; the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) endorsed the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) to address the adverse human rights impacts of business activity.

The UNGPs are the culmination of six years of consultations amongst States, business enterprises and civil society organizations, led by the then Special Representative to the UN Secretary General, Professor John Ruggie. The UNGPs provide a global standard for addressing human rights issues and preventing human rights abuses associated with business activity. They do not create any new international obligations on the State but stand to substantiate the ones that have already been ratified.

The UNGPs are based on what has come to be known as the “Protect, Respect and Remedy Framework”, which rests on three pillars:

• Pillar I: the legal duty of States to protect individuals from business-related adverse human rights impacts
• Pillar II: the responsibility of business enterprises to respect human rights
• Pillar III: the need to ensure effective access to remedies for victims, by States and businesses.

National Action Plan on Business & Human Rights in Pakistan

Over the years, Pakistan has ratified several key international human rights instruments which have been transposed into the domestic regime through a wide variety of federal and provincial laws and policies. These laws have, however been inadequate to address a wide range of human rights violations in economic activities, including in workplaces and in business operations. These include income and wealth inequality, wage inequality and gender disparity, inequality of opportunity, lack of due diligence mechanisms for occupational health and safety, poor working conditions and wages, unregistered workers, informal economy, and child and bonded labour. Effective implementation of policy instruments has remained a key challenge in the country, where Pakistan had lacked a comprehensive National Action Plan on Business & Human Rights compelling the government and the businesses to respect human rights throughout their business activities.

Seeing this untapped potential, in 2015 Oxfam Pakistan, initiated work on advocating for a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights.

A series of over 90 dialogues and orientation sessions were held with key political leaders, senators and parliamentarians to gather political endorsement. Extensive advocacy led to over 10 endorsements from key federal ministers including Shireen Mazari, Minister for Human Rights while 75 legislators, many of them members of the National Assembly Committees on Human Rights, Commerce and Finance were on-board from the federal and provincial assemblies.

Consultations were also held with the private sector where 10 CEOs pledged to adopt gender sensitive policies and committed to implement their corporate responsibility under the pillar of respect of NAP Business and Human Rights. They also promised to revisit and improve their policies on Gender Pay Gap, Minimum Wage and Fairer Share. 55 members of the All Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industries signed a joint statement at the All Pakistan Chambers President Conference (APCPC) pledging to promote the Oxfam agenda of equality.

Approval of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights – A Win

The many years of campaigning finally came to fruition when on September 28, 2021, the Government of Pakistan announced the approval of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights; the first of its type in South Asia. Minister for Human Rights, Ms. Shireen Mazari an ardent supporter throughout tweeted about the development. The news article highlighting this impact can be read here. 

Next Steps:

The National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights lays out the necessary steps for businesses in Pakistan to adapt the three pillars of the National Action Plan at strategic, portfolio and transaction level. Indeed, the National Action Plan sets out how financial sectors must take on board these three pillars and respect the labour laws in the country, give employees equal opportunities and respect collective bargaining for their living wages.  In the next phase of GSP+ status in Pakistan where a monitoring mechanism will be in place from 2023, there is a need that this Action Plan translates into the policies and practices for clear compliance on human rights treaties and best practices in the area of environment, social and labour laws.

Building on the legacy work of Oxfam’s Finance 4 Development project, Fair Finance Pakistan is committed to engaging banks and financial institutions to leverage learning for banks so that they conduct their business responsibly. The means making sure banks adopt the ESG criteria in line with the UNEP Principles for Responsible Banking, that they ensure universal financial access to women, that they adopt responsible lending practices and that they comply with the corporate governance code of conduct and with the State Bank’s Green Banking Guidelines in their business and operations at the strategic, portfolio and transaction level.

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About Fair Finance Pakistan

Fair Finance Pakistan (FFP) aims to ensure that financial institutions in Pakistan respect the social and environmental well-being of local communities, and integrate ESG (environmental, social, and governance) criteria in their business strategies.

FFP is part of the growing network of Fair Finance Asia – a network of over 100 Asian civil society organizations working towards ensuring that financial institutions’ funding decisions in the region respect the social and environmental well-being of local communities. Fair Finance Asia is a part of the global network Fair Finance International.

For more information, please contact:

Asim Jaffry, Program Lead, Fair Finance Pakistan at asim.jaffry@indusconsortium.pk 

Islamabad: In a move to strengthen multi-stakeholders’ dialogue and action on sustainable finance in Pakistan, Fair Finance Pakistan organized its first roundtable meeting with Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce & Industries on responsible banking in the country. The meeting was well attended by over 50 members from the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce & Industry, deputy chief from the State Bank of Pakistan, senior representatives from leading commercial banks including HBL, UBL, National Bank, Askari Bank, Meezan Bank, Faysal Bank, Bank of Punjab, First Women Bank, Apna officials from the Pakistan Banks’ Association and civil society organizations.

A joint communique was presented at the meeting which puts forward recommendations to the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Finance Minister, Governor, State Bank of Pakistan and Chairperson, Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan to play a more pro-active role in ensuring sustainable finance.

Mr. Nasir Zaman, President, Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce & Industry made a strong commitment that the joint communique presents a holistic picture for the regulators and is a collective voice from the business community that this is the time for reform to nurture the business and harness the environment by the regulator.

During the roundtable, Fair Finance Pakistan presented the findings of “Strengthening Sustainable Finance in Pakistan: A scoping review towards institutionalizing Fair Finance Pakistan,” authored by Dr. Abid Aman Burki from Lahore University of Management Sciences.

The scoping review gave an analysis on financial inclusion in Pakistan which is at 21% compared to the State Bank’s ambitious goal of 50% by 2020.

In her welcome remarks, Bernadette Victorio, Program Lead of Fair Finance Asia, said, “Pakistan is an important country for energy transition in Asia. The Fair Finance Asia coalition calls on Asian and international financial institutions operating in the region to urgently stop coal financing and divert resources towards renewable energy in order to align with the Paris Agreement.”

Highlighting the importance of the Pakistan financial sector at the regional level, Hussain Jarwar, CEO of Indus Consortium and member of Fair Finance Pakistan said, “Fair Finance Pakistan will work as an ally to the financial sector in Pakistan, so that together, we can develop a comprehensive regulatory framework for sustainable finance in the country.”

The meeting featured a panel discussion with banking sector experts on consumer financing and responsible banking. Banking sector representatives shared their current policies of integrating environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) guidelines in their operations at the strategic, portfolio and transaction level. Representative from the State Bank of Pakistan highlighted the importance of integrating Bank’s Green Banking Guidelines to foster a culture of responsibility in the banking sector.

Speaking at the panel, Mr. Asim Jaffry, Program Lead, Fair Finance Pakistan said the regulator must shift voluntary reporting towards compliance for listed and non-listed companies.” He also added that collective bargaining must be given to the employees of the financial sector.

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About Fair Finance Pakistan

Fair Finance Pakistan (FFP) aims to ensure that financial institutions in Pakistan respect the social and environmental well-being of local communities, and integrate ESG (environmental, social, and governance) criteria in their business strategies.

FFP is part of the growing network of Fair Finance Asia – a network of over 100 Asian civil society organizations working towards ensuring that financial institutions’ funding decisions in the region respect the social and environmental well-being of local communities. Fair Finance Asia is a part of the global network Fair Finance International.

For more information, please contact:

Asim Jaffry, Program Lead, Fair Finance Pakistan at asim.jaffry@indusconsortium.pk