A seminar to celebrate World Ozone Day-2025 was organized by National Ozone Unit (NOU) of the Ministry of Climate Change & Environmental Coordination (MoCC&EC), Government of Pakistan in collaboration with BUITEMS, Quetta on 23rd September 2025 at Pink Hall, Takatu Campus, Quetta.
The event began with the recitation from the Holy Quran and the National Anthem, followed by welcome remarks from Mr. Ahsan Achakzai, Registrar BUITEMS. A special video message from the Executive Director of UNEP highlighted the global significance of ozone layer protection.
Dr. Saleem Janjua, Chief of the National Ozone Unit (NOU) of Pakistan, Islamabad delivered the Guest of Honor address and explained the overall rationale for arranging this event related to World Ozone Day-2025 and also deliberated on the details for Montreal Protocol. He emphasized that academia has an integral role in phasing out of Ozone Depleting Substances and achieving targets set under the international commitments by carrying out policy-oriented research and piloting innovative projects. With this intent, National Ozone Unit has carried out a series of awareness raising campaigns and is proactive in establishing and maintaining partnerships with academic institutions so that coherent efforts are made and international commitments are met.
Thereafter, Prof. Dr. Khalid Hafeez, Vice Chancellor, BUITEMS also delivered the Guest of Honor Adress from the University side. He appreciated the theme of event and Ministry of Climate Change for organizing the seminar on a topic that is needed for environmental sustainability and is critical to ensure human survival on planet Earth.
Distinguished speakers including Prof. Dr. Anila Ali, Chairperson, Department of Environmental Sciences, BUITEMS, delivered a presentation on “Quetta’s Climate and Ozone Awareness: Challenges of a Mountain City. The session highlighted Quetta’s unique challenges as a high-altitude, semi-arid mountain city with strong solar radiation and frequent air pollution episodes. Participants were briefed on altitude-related increases in ultraviolet (UV) exposure, health risks from PM2.5 pollution, and the importance of international and national ozone protection measures. The event emphasized public awareness, preventive actions, and the critical need for sustainable urban environmental management in Balochistan. Dr. Gohram Malghni, Associate Professor, BUITEMS, spoke on “Ozone Restoring Actions: Rethinking and Shaping Tomorrow’s World.”
To engage students, competitions in quiz, speech, poster, and sports activities were organized, showcasing their creativity and awareness on ozone protection.
The seminar concluded with the distribution of mementos to the esteemed guests and cash prizes to competition winners, followed by a group photo and lunch.The event not only raised awareness about ozone protection but also highlighted BUITEMS’ continued commitment to fostering environmental responsibility and student engagement in addressing global challenges.
Stakeholders unanimously acknowledged the Montreal Protocol as a global environmental success story and called for continued collaboration among government, academia, national and international partners to sustain progress on ozone protection and climate action. The seminar concluded with a collective pledge to strengthen national and international efforts — taking science forward into global actions, for the sake of future generations.