Posted on March, 25 2025

Karachi, 25 March: WWF, the world’s leading independent conservation organization, and GSK, a global biopharma company, have announced a major multi-million-pound partnership running to 2030. WWF and GSK will work together to accelerate the delivery of GSK’s nature commitments with a focus on protecting and restoring freshwater ecosystems, both within GSK’s operations and in its supply chain, as well as demonstrating best practices for the pharmaceutical industry. Freshwater is fundamental to human health and the production of medicines and vaccines, yet the world’s freshwater resources are increasingly under stress. This poses a threat to the health of local communities and the resilience of businesses relying on freshwater as part of manufacturing processes.

Together, WWF and GSK will work to use the power of nature to boost ecosystems, biodiversity, and human well-being in key water-stressed river basins – the Indus River Basin and Delta in Pakistan and the Sutlej River Basin in India. GSK has three manufacturing sites, employing over 800 people, and many suppliers located across these river basins, making it an important region for the manufacturing of medicines to treat respiratory and infectious diseases.   

The partnership aims to replenish more than 300,000m3 of water and positively impact over 100,000 local people by 2030. Programmes will focus on the protection, management and restoration of freshwater habitats and monitoring and stabilising populations of freshwater species like dolphins and otters. They will also support sustainable water management, establish innovative nature-based solutions, promote efficient water usage in local farms, communities, and organizations, whilst improving community access to clean water and support the development of early warning systems in flood-prone areas. 

Regis Simard, GSK’s President Global Supply Chain said: “We are delighted to be working with WWF to help drive positive change in water-stressed regions in India and Pakistan where we have manufacturing sites and where many of our key suppliers are located. By ensuring a sustainable water supply, we can continue to develop and deliver medicines and vaccines that prevent and change the course of disease. Collaborating with partners within and outside of our sector is crucial to achieve our ambitious nature goals, including on freshwater.”

Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General WWF-Pakistan said: “Water management is a pressing issue in Pakistan, with increasing water scarcity, contamination, and inefficient usage posing serious risks to public health, agriculture, and industry. It is crucial that all industries contribute to addressing the nature emergency. Companies like GSK are setting an example by not only minimizing their water usage but also investing in water replenishment initiatives. Climate change is no longer a distant threat—it is impacting our ecosystems and the operational stability of businesses. Through our collaboration, we can build a sustainable future that protects, restores, and replenishes vital freshwater resources, while fostering a climate-resilient business landscape for generations to come”.

Freshwater wildlife populations have suffered the harshest decline in size of all monitored wildlife populations, seeing an 85% decrease since 1970, according to WWF’s latest Living Planet Report. 

Sohail Ali Naqvi, Director Freshwater, WWF-Pakistan remarked that the Indus River Basin including delta are confronted with multiple challenges, including pollution, reduced river flows, construction of dams and canals, and climate change. This results in biodiversity loss, habitat degradation, human migration and changes in livelihood patterns of native communities. “Protecting and restoring the freshwater resources of the basin is crucial to WWF’s mission to bend the curve on biodiversity loss and deliver to Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) targets”, he added.

By working with WWF, GSK will support global freshwater initiatives in alignment with global efforts to protect 30% of oceans, lands, and freshwaters by 2030, including the Freshwater Challenge, which aims to restore 300,000km of degraded rivers and 350 million hectares of degraded wetlands by 2030.