Zong has partnered with WWF-Pakistan to support conservation efforts for the endangered Indus River Dolphin, known scientifically as Platanista minor, inaugurating a dedicated Indus Dolphin Rescue and Mobile Awareness Ambulance at the WWF-Pakistan office in Islamabad as the centrepiece of a practical, field-level conservation commitment.
The inauguration was attended by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Dr. Musadik Malik, Zong Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Huo Junli, WWF-Pakistan Director General Hammad Naqi Khan, and His Excellency Yang Guangyuan of the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad, alongside senior representatives from both partner organisations. Federal Minister Malik described the Indus River Dolphin as older than every civilisation that has flourished along the Indus, saying the species reminds us that living in harmony with nature does not always require sight, and that its conservation is the result of collective action. He acknowledged both Zong and the Chinese Embassy for advancing a shared commitment to conservation and the enduring friendship between Pakistan and China.
The mobile rescue and awareness unit will operate across the stretch of the Indus River between the Guddu and Sukkur barrages in Sindh, which is home to the largest single global population of the Indus River Dolphin. The ambulance will enhance monitoring of stranded dolphins, support timely rescue and safe translocation back to the main river channel, engage more than 1,500 fisherfolk and riverine community members as frontline conservation partners, and deliver 50 awareness sessions across remote settlements along the river. Since 1992, WWF-Pakistan has worked with the Sindh and Punjab Wildlife Departments to rescue and release more than 200 stranded dolphins. Hammad Naqi Khan said the addition of the dedicated ambulance will significantly strengthen emergency response and monitoring capacity, ensuring stranded animals receive timely assistance, and described the partnership as an example of how businesses can move beyond conventional corporate philanthropy to invest in practical, measurable conservation solutions.
Zong Chief Regulatory Officer Kamran Ali said the Indus Dolphin Rescue Ambulance is a concrete expression of the company’s commitment to inclusive growth and environmental stewardship, describing it as a meaningful initiative rooted in the enduring friendship between China and Pakistan. The partnership aligns with Zong’s sustainability pillars covering green and low-carbon operations and inclusive growth, with the company framing environmental stewardship and socioeconomic development as complementary objectives that can advance together toward a more sustainable future for Pakistan. The Indus River Dolphin has faced decades of habitat fragmentation, shrinking freshwater flows, and accidental canal strandings, making it one of the world’s most endangered freshwater cetaceans, with Pakistan’s current estimated population of around 2,000 individuals representing a conservation recovery that both WWF-Pakistan and government agencies have worked to achieve over more than three decades.
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