Tackling Poverty Through Water

News Desk

Peshawar: The writers of the book ‘Water Profile of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’ emphasize the urgent requirement for greater involvement to improve water availability in a region dealing with diverse forms of poverty.

They emphasize the crucial role of better water access in alleviating poverty and hardship, emphasizing its profound influence.

Recently launched in Peshawar, this pioneering book, edited by Dr Arjumand Nizami, Adviser Environment and Climate Change at Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, and Jawad Ali, former director of the Climate Change Center at the University of Agriculture Peshawar, comprises 14 chapters contributed by 19 experts in the fields of environment, water resources, and climate change.

The book is a groundbreaking effort, consolidating scattered knowledge on water and related sectors in the province. It played a crucial role in shaping KP’s inaugural Integrated Water Resources Management Strategy and a guidebook for strategic IWRM planning at the catchment level.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa possesses diverse landscapes, from agricultural plains to mountains, with substantial seasonal variations, necessitating holistic resource management involving users, planners, and policymakers at all levels.

The province’s hydrological assets include the Indus basin, Rudh Kohi catchment in the South, and glacial highlands in the North, which present opportunities for local investment generation. While the diversity of water resources presents opportunities, it also poses management challenges, impacting agriculture—the primary livelihood for 80 percent of the rural workforce. Water scarcity remains a limiting factor, with only 34 percent of cultivated areas receiving government-managed canal irrigation.

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Most domestic water needs are met through groundwater, often resulting in wasteful use due to a flat-rate tariff system, exacerbating multidimensional poverty in KP.

Climate change effects, such as shifted rainfall patterns, pose economic implications for affected farmers and water management planners. Despite the Indus Basin Water Apportionment Accord allocating 8.78 MAF to KP, the province utilizes only 5.97 MAF annually, leaving a surplus of 2.81 MAF.

KP province boasts vast surface water resources, including rivers, lakes, dams, and reservoirs, supporting fish farming. Groundwater potential remains underexplored, with estimates of annual extraction reaching 3.97 MAF for agriculture and domestic use.

Improving water use efficiency and productivity, evident from the disparities in water consumption for crop production compared to national averages, demands a focus on water governance, efficiency, and enhanced agricultural strategies.

Enhancing input efficiency and resource base quality while reducing water losses by 43–53 percent through improved governance and efficiency strategies is imperative for irrigated agriculture in KP.

The authors advocate managing available water resources to augment productivity rather than fixating on adequacy or scarcity, emphasizing the need for innovative strategies amid existing challenges.