Pakistan’s much awaited water Policy

Pakistan has been hit by the severe shortage of water. Since 2005, it is constantly facing drought like problems. Due to these, the need for national water policy in Pakistan was being expressed in the past. And to address this issue, Pakistan’s Council of Common Interest (CCI) in its 37th meeting on April 24, unanimously approved the first-ever National Water Policy (NWP) of Pakistan.

Quest for a water policy so far

The National Water Policy (NWP) draft was initially prepared in 2005 after a World Bank comprehensive policy study, however, once at the Pakistan’s federal cabinet this draft could not see the light of day. In 2010, the decision to revise the NWP was taken to incorporate the recent developments in the water sector and the growing impact of climate change on water resources. A joint committee was formed to finalise the water policy. In 2012, the committee presented its final version to the ministry of law and justice who were of the view that the constitution does not provide any provision for the NWP as this was a provincial matter. In 2015, upon the Pakistan’s prime minister’s instructions, the updated NWP was made available to all stakeholders for review and updated accordingly. After much debate and consensus building among the federal and provincial governments, the NWP was sent to the Council of Common Interests in 2017

Objectives of this Policy

The aim of the policy is to put in a framework for ensuring effective management and conservation of existing water resources, improving availability, reliability, and quality of fresh water to meet critical municipal, agricultural, energy and food security needs, besides addressing environmental concerns.

The draft policy addresses critical issues of reduction in wastage of water, enhancement of water storage capacity from 14 million acre feet (MAF) to at least 28 MAF through a network of small, medium and large-sized storage reservoirs, increasing efficiency of water use by producing more crop per drop, gradual replacement and refurbishing of irrigation infrastructure and setting up of realistic and achievable targets in consultation with the provinces.

Water and Pakistan’s Economy

Pakistan is an agro-based economy where agriculture accounts for up to 20% of GDP.  Agriculture is also the largest consumer of water. It is estimated that up to 95% of all surface water and groundwater is utilised in irrigation. Therefore, water is the essential factor driving our economy via water embedded in the production of various agricultural outputs and further commodities.

An estimate reveals that drinking contaminated water causes up to 40% of the diseases in Pakistan which result in income losses of Rs25–58 billion annually, accounting for approximately 0.6–1.44% of GDP.

Pakistan is primarily a ‘water economy’ and faces exponentially growing problems of water scarcity, climate change, increased population demand for water and mismanagement of water for industrial and agricultural consumption.

Now it will be interesting to see how Pakistan resolves disputes related to water sharing between states. In Pakistan where Punjab is the most prominent in terms of agriculture and industries and due to its political reach, other states have been depriving of their legitimate rights, and now it is the question of time that it simplifies the operation of this policy or uses it as an instrument of fulfillment of its interests.

What is Council of Common Interests?

Council of Common Interests or CCI is a constitutional body in Pakistan. The CCI resolves the disputes of power sharing between the federation and provinces. CCI was formed under 1973 constitution. Until 2010 the body worked under Cabinet Division. After 18th amendment the body was transferred under Ministry of Inter Provincial Coordination in March 2010.

Membership of CCI consists of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, all four Provincial Chief Ministers and three members to be nominated by Prime Minister (Usually Cabinet members). After passage of the Eighteenth Constitutional Amendment, it is mandatory for the Council to meet once in ninety days.