PM seeks global efforts for water management

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday sought comprehensive global efforts for water management, urging world leaders to prioritise the water issues in their policies and actions, laying out a seven-point agenda involving the scarce resource, reports BSS. "We must work together (for water management) and act now . . . Bangladesh is committed to playing its role in this regard," she told the opening of Water Summit-2016 at Hungarian capital of Budapest drawing heads of state and government of different countries.  The Bangladesh premier particularly laid emphasis on charting out an appropriate policy on sharing trans-boundary waters saying “effective management of trans-boundary river water is very important” referring to the importance of water in the traditional life of the downstream deltaic country.
“Scarcity is not the main cause for persisting water crisis but the problem is also linked with equitable distribution,” she said but acknowledged sharing of cross-border streams as a “complex issue”.
Sheikh Hasina, a member of UN High Level Panel on Water (HLPW), laid out the seven-point agenda being the head of government of riverine Bangladesh, criss-crossed by 230 rivers, 54 being cross-boundary ones.
“Water occupies a central place to our culture, ethos, lives and livelihoods,” she said.
The premier said actions based on her proposed seven-point agenda might help attain the goals adopted by the High Level Panel on Water during the UN General Assembly in last September. As the first point of her agenda, Sheikh Hasina said water should be the integral part of any development endeavor at national, regional and global level as “Agenda 2030 have sufficiently articulated the inter-linkages and interfaces between water and wider sustainable development architecture”.
Secondly, she said, special focus needs to be paid to people or group who is usually left behind as millions of people around the world face difficulties to access safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
As the third point of her proposal, the premier “urgently” sought to build resilience to water related disasters. “Fourth, effective management of trans-boundary river water is very important as scarcity is not the main cause for persisting water crisis but the problem is also linked with equitable distribution,” she said.
As the next point of the agenda, Sheikh Hasina said since water is extensively used for agricultural development and food security, “efforts should continue to develop less water-intensive varieties of crops and water efficient technologies”. Sixth, she said, every country needs to share with each other our ‘light-house initiatives’ to further develop our knowledge, capacity, skill and technique in terms of development and efficient use of water resources. “... a global fund on water is absolutely important to support research, innovation, technology transfer to realize the water related goals and targets,” she said.

PM seeks global efforts for water management

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday sought comprehensive global efforts for water management, urging world leaders to prioritise the water issues in their policies and actions, laying out a seven-point agenda involving the scarce resource, reports BSS. We must work together (for water management) and act now . . . Bangladesh is committed to playing its role in this regard, she told the opening of Water Summit-2016 at Hungarian capital of Budapest drawing heads of state and government of different countries. The Bangladesh premier particularly laid emphasis on charting out an appropriate policy on sharing trans-boundary waters saying effective management of trans-boundary river water is very important referring to the importance of water in the traditional life of the downstream deltaic country. Scarcity is not the main cause for persisting water crisis but the problem is also linked with equitable distribution, she said but acknowledged sharing of cross-border streams as a complex issue. Sheikh Hasina, a member of UN High Level Panel on Water (HLPW), laid out the seven-point agenda being the head of government of riverine Bangladesh, criss-crossed by 230 rivers, 54 being cross-boundary ones. Water occupies a central place to our culture, ethos, lives and livelihoods, she said. The premier said actions based on her proposed seven-point agenda might help attain the goals adopted by the High Level Panel on Water during the UN General Assembly in last September. As the first point of her agenda, Sheikh Hasina said water should be the integral part of any development endeavor at national, regional and global level as Agenda 2030 have sufficiently articulated the inter-linkages and interfaces between water and wider sustainable development architecture. Secondly, she said, special focus needs to be paid to people or group who is usually left behind as millions of people around the world face difficulties to access safe drinking water and basic sanitation. As the third point of her proposal, the premier urgently sought to build resilience to water related disasters. Fourth, effective management of trans-boundary river water is very important as scarcity is not the main cause for persisting water crisis but the problem is also linked with equitable distribution, she said. As the next point of the agenda, Sheikh Hasina said since water is extensively used for agricultural development and food security, efforts should continue to develop less water-intensive varieties of crops and water efficient technologies. Sixth, she said, every country needs to share with each other our light-house initiatives to further develop our knowledge, capacity, skill and technique in terms of development and efficient use of water resources. ... a global fund on water is absolutely important to support research, innovation, technology transfer to realize the water related goals and targets, she said.