ISLAMABAD: The current water crisis in Pakistan has badly affected the already diminishing agriculture sector in the country.
A representative of farmers and exporters told WealthPK that crops are severely affected by the unusually high temperature and water shortage, resulting in a decline of around 50 percent yield in the current year. “By adopting solid measures, the government can overcome this crisis,” he added.
Nazam Maqbool, a social scientist at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, said that the water shortage is becoming severe with the passing of time. Pakistan is among the 17 countries that are facing severe water shortage.
“According to data, more than 90 percent of water is used by the agriculture sector in Pakistan. Out of it, 80 percent of water is used by the growers of four major crops including rice, wheat, sugarcane and cotton. The share of these four crops in the total contribution to gross domestic product is less than five percent,” he said.
He said that the price mechanism for utilisation of water for the purpose of irrigation is also flawed. The charges received from growers for using water are only 20 percent of the operating and management cost. As a result, the table of groundwater is dropping.
According to a study conducted by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Indus River basin is the second most water-stressed basin in the world. “Pakistan’s 80 percent of water comes from India and 96 percent of freshwater is based in the Indus basin. It means that Pakistan is heavily reliant on a single source of water, which is volatile,” said Nazam.
Different countries in the world recycle wastewater to reuse it. Israel recycles about 90 percent of its wastewater. Singapore, a water-scarce country, is recycling its wastewater to fulfil its 40 percent of water requirements.
Nazam said that Pakistan needs to take solid measures to overcome the water crisis. The rapidly growing population is also an important cause of the water shortage in the country. “This is one of the important factors, which is leading to a rising demand for water,” he added.
He called for the country to improve water management. “This is need of the hour to introduce modern technologies to save water. The use of modern technology and scientific ways can help the growers to irrigate their farms by using less water,” he added.
The introduction of an appropriate price mechanism for the use of water is also a must. “A proper record of the water utilised by different sectors in the country should be maintained. Pakistan devised its first water policy in 2018, but a lot is needed to make it more effective,” he added.
Nazam told WealthPK that the current water policy doesn’t consider the water challenges in urban areas. “It has nothing about water quality. There are no quantifiable targets in this policy. The policy needs to be redefined according to international standards with water conservation target,” he added.
