The speakers of national water conference including policymakers, researchers, farmers, and various stakeholders have unanimously called for the free availability of clean and safe water for everyone, coupled with sustainable usage for agricultural practices.
The conference titled: “Water, People, and Equity: Building a Better Future for All”, was organized by Indus Consortium, an organization dedicated to environmental and humanitarian causes, with the support of Oxfam and the Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) at local hotel of Islamabad on Monday.
Representatives from academia, tail-end farmers, and government departments such as Indus River System Authority (IRSA), Sindh Water Sector and Barrage Improvement, Planning and Development (P&D), Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA), Punjab Irrigation and Drainage Authority (PIDA), and other stakeholders from across the country who participated in the conference, welcomed the Sindh Water Policy.
They urged its swift implementation and expressed hopes for the development of similar policies in other provinces, with a particular emphasis on Punjab.
The Sindh Water Policy, largely shaped by input from tail-end and women farmers, is mostly based on recommendation to the government by the Indus Consortium.
The organization worked closely with farmer communities at three canals in Sindh and Punjab: AkramWah in Sindh, and Dajal Canal and Rangpur Canals in Punjab.