Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has directed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) to devise detailed plans to conserve water in the twin-cities. A workshop was arranged by the Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives in collaboration with Agence Française Development (AFD) to showcase the institutional and governance models of municipal service delivery in urban cities of Pakistan, particularly in twin-cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

The purpose of the workshop was to assess the institutional setting of municipal services of the two cities. The Ministry’s task is to provide a platform where knowledge sharing and effort coordination could be done. All relevant stakeholders have been made part of the program so that viable solutions to the problem of municipal services could be provided. In this vein the AFD’s job is to provide technical assistance to the ministry and the development authorities, to make sure that improvements in services are made.

Addressing the workshop, the minister said that the “growing population of the country and the world, demands that we ready ourselves for the coming shortage of water. Pakistan is one of the most water-stressed countries in the world. If we want to survive as a species, we need to learn to conserve water. Therefore, it is important that the development authorities of the two cities take the initiative to devise a plan where water is conserved to the maximum.”

Water wastage was discussed during the meeting given the critical conditions facing the globe in wake of the climate crisis. The minister said “there was no institutional mechanism in place nor the people so aware and active to make sure that water is not wasted.” “In the next few years, water shortage will become the biggest problem facing the country. There is dire need that practical steps are taken to make an immediate action plan to avert the impending crises of water shortage.”  He directed the authorities to make an immediate plan so that the problem could be addressed on priority basis.

Talking about water tax, he said that “governments around the world collect a water tax. This puts a penalty on the consumers to use water more economically. Here in Pakistan, nobody talks about taxing the water. So, people do not care about running taps. They just keep on wasting it. This is not good. Also, water filtration and treatment plants should be installed so that sewage water can be treated to be reused.”

“Conservation of water is a behavioural problem. Unless people do not change their behaviours, water will continue to be wasted. Governance will become more effective if people are ready to improve their consumption behaviours,” he added. It was also highlighted during the workshop that the standard of municipal services in Islamabad was not in the same league as they were in planned cities and capitals around the world. The reason for this is that the institutional structure for municipal services is vague and ineffective. There was a lot of overlap between duties and responsibilities of the various authorities and institutions. There was no clarity and nobody was ready to take responsibility to improve the conditions.

The current model of municipal service delivery is operating in “crisis management mode” which is inhibiting the abilities of staff to plan, innovate and integrate (cutting-edge technology and ICT solutions) into service delivery based on needs and demands, the workshop concluded.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk