The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Pakistan organized a national consultation workshop titled “Updates on Current Status of Water Accounting in Four Provinces of Pakistan and Developing National Level Water Accounting Guidelines”.
The workshop aimed to support the implementation of the National Water Policy (NWP), and was organized under the UK Aid-funded Water Resource Accountability in Pakistan (WRAP) Programme Component 1: Climate Resilient Solutions for Improving Water Governance (CRS-IWaG).
Dr. Mohsin Hafeez, Director for Water, Food, and Ecosystems and Team Leader for the WRAP Programme Component 1: CRS-IWaG, briefed the meeting on the provincial consultations for the Water Accounting Journey. He informed them that IWMI Pakistan had initiated work on Water Accounting and Water Resources Assessment at the federal level under the WRAP Programme Component 1: CRS-IWaG.
Furthermore, he said that developing a National Water Accounting Framework would enable the government to make informed decisions and resolve disputes between the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, KP, and Balochistan. He added that the government has information on surface water for the Indus Basin, but groundwater data is unavailable, which hinders accurate decision-making for water management.
While giving an overview of the WRAP Programme Component 1, Dr Hafeez said that IWMI Pakistan had developed a water accounting framework at the federal level in Punjab’s Okara district. In addition, Eddy Covariance flux towers were installed in Okara, Chakwal, Rahim Yar Khan, and Sheikhupura, which will provide data on water and carbon emissions in agriculture and contribute to agroecological zoning.
Dr. Hafeez also mentioned that IWMI Pakistan organized four consultation workshops at the provincial levels. The workshops brought together all key stakeholders, including federal and provincial government officials, policymakers, water experts, and practitioners from across the country, to discuss and deliberate on the importance of Water Accounting and its implications for sustainable water management in Pakistan.