ISLAMABAD, September 16, 2026: Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani met a high-level delegation from the Pakistan-China Institute (PCI) on Wednesday to discuss ways to align Pakistan’s energy sector with its long-term economic policy goals.
The delegation was led by PCI Executive Director Mustafa Hyder Syed and included experts from diplomacy, finance and climate policy.
The delegation included Julia Skorupska and Lauren Colligan from the Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA), Tyler Matsuo and Tony Chen from the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Muhammad Umar Farooq from PCI, former PPIB Managing Director Shah Jahan Mirza, and a representative of the British government, Mr Mitchell.
During the meeting, the participants discussed the links between energy policy, economic growth and climate change, with a focus on long-term planning.
Bilal Azhar Kayani said the impacts of climate change were increasingly affecting economic growth in developing countries.
He said the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, was working on effective strategies to address climate-related challenges while protecting the country’s development and economic growth targets.
The minister stressed the importance of aligning energy planning with Pakistan’s wider economic objectives so that climate risks could be addressed without slowing development.
The delegation appreciated the government’s initiatives and policy approach and assured the minister of its cooperation in efforts related to energy, climate policy and sustainable economic development.
