ISLAMABAD – A team of Pakistani innovators, led by Nabeel Siddiqui from ModulusTech, won “Special Commendation Award” under UNIDO-GCIP Global Awards 2017 in Los Angeles, USA for developing affordable housing for refugees.
ModulusTech has developed affordable, flat-pack housing for refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) that can be assembled by three people in three hours with a unit cost of only $3,000. This alternative shelter that includes plumbing and electricity produces five times less greenhouse gas emissions that concrete buildings while improving their living conditions, and thus has the potential to address climate migration issues. This year, three teams – namely Modulus Tech, Biotech and Aerosync from the fourth cycle of GCIP Pakistan’s Call for Awards 2017– participated in this event, says a press release.
In 2015 and 2016, innovators of GCIP Pakistan won such Awards as well, demonstrating the high innovation and entrepreneurship potential in the country.
Clean technology innovators and entrepreneurs from Pakistan, Turkey, Morocco, Thailand, South Africa, and India were honored at the 2018 GCIP Global Week and Cleantech Open Global Forum this week in Los Angeles, USA. The Global Cleantech Innovation Programme (GCIP) award winners joined top entrepreneurs from around the world to celebrate the progress, achievements and successes of clean technology innovation in addressing global environmental and sustainability challenges.
GCIP is a joint initiative of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), and is conducted in partnership with the Cleantech Open (CTO), a Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator programme. Each startup involved receives training, mentoring, and promotion, and is put in contact with potential investors, customers and partners throughout the programme. Each national GCIP receives $1M to $2M in funding from the GEF, which is matched by $2M to $6M+ in co-financing (including in-kind) from in-country public and private-sector partners.
“Today, GCIP is the cornerstone of GEF support for small and medium enterprises. Innovation is critical to solving today’s global environmental threats. And, recognizing the central role of the private sector, we hope to do even more in the future. We need scalable, innovative ideas that embrace the opportunity that new technologies provide us with,” said Naoko Ishii, GEF CEO and Chairperson, in a video address to the GCIP Global Week and Cleantech Open Global Forum participants.
Addressing the Forum on behalf of UNIDO, Director General, LI Yong, thanked the entrepreneurs and innovators “for the transformative impact that your innovations are having, and for their contribution to the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals relating to clean energy and to green industry, innovation and infrastructure.”
