The Urban Unit

The award will support the strengthening of Pakistan’s existing air quality monitoring network through the installation of 160 low-cost air quality monitors across 10 cities in Pakistan. This project aims to enhance data integration, support policy implementation, and facilitate the dissemination of health advisories. The collected data will be publicly accessible through a dedicated online portal, allowing users to download datasets, visualize trends, and incorporate insights into research and policymaking. By ensuring open access to air quality data, the project will empower local governments to develop city-level action plans for air quality improvement. Additionally, it will equip citizen groups with reliable data for advocacy and driving meaningful changes in air quality policies.

Pakistan is faced with deteriorating air quality and before it becomes a case of ‘Too Little Too Late’, we want to use the sensors being made available to us through the EPIC fund to aggressively make available open-source air quality data for different cities in Pakistan for analysis, actions, and planning. We are confident that once consistent and reliable air quality data starts flowing in, the Urban Unit with its expertise and vantage point in the government will be in a position to push policy and legislative action for improvement in overall air quality standards in the country.

Muhammad Omar Masud, Chief Executive Officer, The Urban Unit