Najma Minhas |
Unfortunately, while many of us are fast becoming immune to weekly media headlines of India and Pakistan’s latest never-ending drama with India on the Indus water treaty, donor agencies are continuously publishing reports warning that we are very quickly going to be water starved.
While the think tanks of the world discuss ‘water wars’, Pakistani parliamentarians and government agencies are not interested in understanding the implications of what does water scarcity mean nor do they understand the political and economic consequences this will have. A new donor report helps us to understand the origins of this insensitivity.
Last week, the United Nations Development Program issued its quarterly report titled “Development Advocate Pakistan” in which it addresses key issues facing Pakistan. The latest report addressed water security and called it Pakistan’s most critical development challenge.
Pakistan’s water availability has gone down dramatically from once being a water-abundant country to now experiencing water stress. UNDP statistics show that between 1990 and 2015, per capita water availability declined from 2,172 cubic metres per inhabitant, to 1,306 cubic metres per inhabitant.
The report has also identified how the feudal structure in Pakistan is now being perpetuated through this water scarcity and exacerbating economic inequality in the rural areas of the country. In an outreach program to disseminate the findings of the report, former chairman of the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda), Shamsul Mulk highlighted an often ignored fact that not only does Pakistan not have a sustainable water policy but more significantly the water that exists is mostly used by landlords in a most inequitable distribution and the poor are deprived of their share.
Pakistan’s water availability has gone down dramatically from once being a water-abundant country to now experiencing water stress.
Many of these landlords are sitting in Parliament and act like ‘absentee landlords’ of water in Pakistan, he said. “Because of this absentee landlordism, water has become the property of the landlords and the poor are deprived of their share’’. This actually gives a strange play to understanding why many parliamentarians are just not interested in dealing with the water crisis. It helps them to stay economically and politically powerful in the regions where they hail from.
“The worst example of landlordism is in Sindh. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Pushtoon society is a lot more egalitarian. In general, landlords don’t want the poor to become economically self-sufficient to remain in power. So, this water issue is very political in nature,” he said.
Understanding why these parliamentarians are not interested in conserving water also helps to understand why the discussion revolving around Kalabagh dam is a political hot potato and no Pakistani government wants to address it.
A casual observer or a new comer to this scene, is surprised that since the commissioning of the Mangla and Tarbela dams in the 1960s and 1970s respectively, Pakistan has not developed any major water storage infrastructure. During this period, India, the upper riparian in the Indus water system has worked diligently on hundreds of small and large dams and is still expanding its hold through newer structures.
A casual observer or a new comer to this scene, is surprised that since the commissioning of the Mangla and Tarbela dams in the 1960s and 1970s respectively, Pakistan has not developed any major water storage infrastructure.
Consequently, water storage capacity has often receded to less than 30 days against the minimum requirement of 120 days. Despite this, it has not become an issue for Pakistan’s mostly feudal origin elite. This class has neither been able to develop any consensus around major dams – like Kalabagh – or show genuine motivation for other water reservoirs.
The understanding of the problems of lack of water storage Pakistan faces has to be recognized and resolved by the Pakistan government and not held subject to the political blackmailing of a class that is not interested in achieving laudable goals such as the ‘Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)’ that the government has affirmed that it would work towards.
The Sustainable Development Goals, has placed an emphasis on ensuring availability and sustainable management of water for all, this includes achieving universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water, sanitation and hygiene. Currently, over 27 million Pakistanis do not have access to safe water and 53 million do not have access to adequate sanitation facilities.
Not only does Pakistan not have a sustainable water policy but more significantly the water that exists is used by landlords and the poor are deprived of their share.
The repercussions on health alone are severe with an approximate 39,000 children under five die every year from diarrhoea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation. Furthermore, with the increasing burden on water resources, threats will increase to Pakistanis’ well-being from unsafe or inadequate water supplies.
Working on the Indus water treaty is very important as is working on a treaty with Afghanistan to ensure a continued and stable supply of water in Pakistan. But along with this it is necessary for the government to work on creating water reservoirs, equitable water supply and managing better use of existing water supplies.
Najma Minhas is an analyst and Director of Governance & Policy Advisors. Her email address is: email@example.com and tweets @MinhasNajma
"""Kwa bahati mbaya, wakati wengi wetu tunakuwa na kinga ya vichwa vya habari vya kila wiki vya India na Pakistan, drama ya hivi karibuni isiyo na mwisho na India juu ya mkataba wa maji ya Indus, mashirika ya wafadhili yanachapisha ripoti za kuonya kwamba tutapata njaa ya maji haraka sana." Wakati think tanks za dunia zinazungumzia "vita vya maji", wabunge wa Pakistan na mashirika ya serikali hayapendezwi kuelewa athari za upungufu wa maji na hawaelewi athari za kisiasa na kiuchumi ambazo hii itakuwa nayo. Ripoti mpya ya wafadhili inatusaidia kuelewa chanzo cha ukosefu huo wa hisia. "Mwaka jana, Shirika la Umoja wa Mataifa la Maendeleo lilitoa ripoti yake ya kila robo mwaka yenye kichwa ""Msaada wa Maendeleo Pakistan"" ambapo inazungumzia masuala muhimu yanayokabili Pakistan." Ripoti ya hivi karibuni ilizungumzia usalama wa maji na kuuita changamoto muhimu zaidi ya maendeleo ya Pakistan. Upatikanaji wa maji nchini Pakistan umepungua sana kutoka kuwa nchi yenye maji mengi hadi sasa kuwa na shida ya maji. Takwimu za UNDP zinaonyesha kuwa kati ya mwaka 1990 na 2015, upatikanaji wa maji kwa kila mtu ulipungua kutoka mita 2,172 kwa kila mtu hadi mita 1,306 kwa kila mtu. Ripoti hiyo pia imebainisha jinsi muundo wa feudal nchini Pakistan unavyoendelea sasa kupitia upungufu huu wa maji na kuongezeka kwa usawa wa kiuchumi katika maeneo ya vijijini ya nchi. Katika mpango wa kueneza matokeo ya ripoti hiyo, mwenyekiti wa zamani wa Mamlaka ya Maji na Nguvu ya Maendeleo (WAPDA), Shamsul Mulk, alisisitiza ukweli ambao mara nyingi hupuuzwa kwamba sio tu Pakistan haina sera endelevu ya maji, lakini kwa maana zaidi, maji yaliyopo hutumiwa na wamiliki wa ardhi kwa usambazaji usio wa haki na maskini wananyimwa sehemu yao. Upatikanaji wa maji nchini Pakistan umepungua sana kutoka kuwa nchi yenye maji mengi hadi sasa kuwa na shida ya maji. Wengi wa wamiliki hawa wa ardhi wanaketi katika Bunge na kutenda kama "wamiliki wa ardhi wasiowepo" wa maji nchini Pakistan, alisema. "Kwa sababu ya utajiri huu wa ardhi, maji yamekuwa mali ya wamiliki wa ardhi na maskini wameachwa na sehemu yao". Hii kwa kweli inatoa mchezo wa ajabu wa kuelewa kwa nini wabunge wengi hawapendezwi tu kushughulikia mgogoro wa maji. Inawasaidia kubaki na nguvu za kiuchumi na kisiasa katika mikoa wanayotoka. <unk>Mfano mbaya zaidi wa umiliki wa ardhi ni katika Sindh. Katika Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, jamii ya Pashtun ni ya usawa zaidi. Kwa ujumla, wamiliki wa ardhi hawataki maskini wawe na uwezo wa kujitegemea kiuchumi ili wabaki madarakani. Kwa hiyo, suala hili la maji ni la kisiasa sana, "alisema. Kuelewa kwa nini wabunge hawa hawapendezwi na kuhifadhi maji pia husaidia kuelewa kwa nini mjadala unaozunguka bwawa la Kalabagh ni viazi moto vya kisiasa na hakuna serikali ya Pakistan inayotaka kuizungumzia. "Mchunguzi wa kawaida au mgeni katika eneo hili, anashangaa kwamba tangu kuanzishwa kwa mabwawa ya Mangla na Tarbela katika miaka ya 1960 na 1970, Pakistan haijaendeleza miundombinu yoyote kubwa ya kuhifadhi maji. """ Katika kipindi hiki, India, mto wa juu katika mfumo wa maji wa Indus, imefanya kazi kwa bidii kwenye mamia ya mabwawa madogo na makubwa na bado inaongeza udhibiti wake kupitia miundo mipya. "Mchunguzi wa kawaida au mgeni katika eneo hili, anashangaa kwamba tangu kuanzishwa kwa mabwawa ya Mangla na Tarbela katika miaka ya 1960 na 1970, Pakistan haijaendeleza miundombinu yoyote kubwa ya kuhifadhi maji. """ Kwa sababu hiyo, uwezo wa kuhifadhi maji mara nyingi umepungua hadi chini ya siku 30 dhidi ya mahitaji ya chini ya siku 120. Licha ya hili, haijawa suala kwa wakuu wa Pakistan wenye asili ya feudal. Darasa hili halijaweza kuendeleza makubaliano yoyote karibu na mabwawa makubwa - kama Kalabagh - au kuonyesha motisha halisi kwa hifadhi nyingine za maji. "Kutambua matatizo ya ukosefu wa maji Pakistan inakabiliwa na lazima kutambuliwa na kutatuliwa na serikali ya Pakistan na si kushikiliwa chini ya uchokozi wa kisiasa wa darasa ambalo halina nia ya kufikia malengo ya kustahili kama vile ""Lengo la Maendeleo Endelevu"" ambayo serikali imethibitisha kwamba itafanya kazi kuelekea." Lengo la Maendeleo Endelevu ni kuhakikisha upatikanaji na usimamizi endelevu wa maji kwa wote, ikiwemo kufikia upatikanaji wa ulimwengu na usawa wa maji ya kunywa salama na ya bei nafuu, usafi wa mazingira na usafi. Kwa sasa, zaidi ya watu milioni 27 nchini Pakistan hawana maji safi na milioni 53 hawana vifaa vya usafi wa mazingira. Pakistan haina sera ya maji ya kudumu, lakini zaidi ya hayo, maji yaliyopo yanatumiwa na wamiliki wa ardhi na maskini wananyimwa sehemu yao. Matokeo ya ugonjwa huo ni makubwa, na watoto wapatao 39,000 chini ya umri wa miaka mitano hufa kila mwaka kutokana na kuhara kwa sababu ya maji yasiyo salama na usafi wa mazingira. Kwa kuongezea, kwa kuongezeka kwa mzigo juu ya rasilimali za maji, vitisho vitaongezeka kwa ustawi wa Wapakistan kutokana na usambazaji wa maji usio salama au usio wa kutosha. """Kufanya kazi kwenye mkataba wa maji ya Indus ni muhimu sana, kama vile kufanya kazi kwenye mkataba na Afghanistan kuhakikisha usambazaji wa maji wa kuendelea na thabiti nchini Pakistan." Lakini pamoja na hili ni muhimu kwa serikali kufanya kazi juu ya kuunda hifadhi za maji, usambazaji wa maji wa usawa na kusimamia matumizi bora ya usambazaji wa maji uliopo. Najma Minhas ni mchambuzi na Mkurugenzi wa Usimamizi na Washauri wa Sera. Anwani yake ya barua pepe ni: email@example.com na tweets @MinhasNajma