WEDNESDAY JUNE 10: Water preservation vital for prosperous, sustainable future: Prime Minister

DUSHANBE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday stressing need of preserving water said it was one of main pre-requisites to succeed globally in march towards a prosperous and sustainable future for present and future generations. Addressing a high-level international conference on the Implementation of the International Decade for Action, "Water for Life" 2005-2015, he called upon the need to draw upon multiple best examples for enhanced national, regional and global co-operation on water and sanitation-related challenges. The event was also attended by President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and other dignitaries.
"We will need an integrated, co-ordinated and balanced approach with strengthened regional and global partnership at all levels to ensure effective implementation of the renewed water related goals, targets and commitments." The Prime Minister in this regard said provision of enhanced means of implementation would be critical and resource mobilisation, capacity-building and technological assistance would require special attention.
He said water was one of the main pre-requisites to succeed globally in the march towards a prosperous and sustainable "future we want" for present and future generations. Prime Minister commended the initiative to hold this high-level Conference on Implementation of the International Decade for Action, "Water for Life". He termed it most timely initiative for collective stocktaking and to reaffirm commitment to renewed global synergies to accomplish water-related internationally agreed goals.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the source for water was finite and a major challenge. He said global demand for water was ever increasing and urbanisation and climate change was added to the complexities of the challenge. He said water was crucial for poverty eradication, cross-sectoral economic growth, environmental sustainability and food and energy security.
He said provision of safe and affordable water to all, sanitation, sustainable management of water resources, investment in water infrastructure, and trans-boundary co-operation have been some of the issues on the global agenda for quite some time. He said the Decade for Action had brought water-related issues further to the centre stage. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said Pakistan was one of the co-sponsors of the UN Resolution that established the International Decade.
He identified several milestones in that regard and said the millennium development goals (MDG) target of "halving, by 2015, the proportion of population without safe drinking water and sanitation," was met well ahead of time. He said UN had recognised access to safe drinking water and sanitation as a human right. "There is now much better awareness at national, regional and global levels about water's impact on life and our planet," the Prime Minister said.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appreciated the leadership and vision of President Rahmon who he said had invested personal efforts to further the global water agenda in the past years, through various concrete measures to promote awareness, and catalyse partnerships at all levels.
"We also fully support the President's proposal to launch a New International Decade for Action 'Water for Sustainable Development'. I would suggest we call it International Decade for Enhanced Action "Water for Sustainable Development for All." He said efforts of the UN system, including UN-Water, and other international and regional organisations also merit acknowledgement. Prime Minister while stressing the need to look forward said "we must learn from the experience of the Decade, especially the gaps in implementation."
He said the Conference was a fresh reminder that the challenge was yet to be overcome. "Our work is still not complete. Millions remain without access to water, while for billions access to sanitation facilities continues to be an out-of-reach luxury," he said.
The Prime Minister said by 2025, two third of the world's population might be facing water-stress, as during the same period, water demand would shoot up by 40 percent. He said the challenge was expected to be more intense for Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States. Risks of flooding and drought due to climatic and other factors, threaten lives and livelihoods undermining sustainable economic growth and prosperity. "We also need to promote new ways of trans-boundary co-operation on water, accommodating mutual interests, and building trust and confidence."
He said later this year, an ambitious and transformative universal Post-2015 Development Agenda would be adopted in New York. He said water constituted the core of sustainable development as it had impact on all its three dimensions. Prime Minister Sharif said Pakistan being host to some of the world's biggest glaciers, had at the same time one of the most climate-vulnerable and was a "water-stressed" country. He said Agriculture-sector was the backbone of national economy and it was but natural that Pakistan should attach high importance to water related issues. Prime Minister said steady progress in improving access to safe drinking water, in pursuance of the MDGs was being made. On sanitation, the progress was relatively modest. "We are very much conscious of the economic impact of inadequate sanitation," he said.