QUETTA: The Lasbela University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Sciences (LUAWMS) and a non-governmental organisation, Mishal Pakistan, have pledged to exchange knowledge resources with key stakeholders in Balochistan for facilitating preservation and proper management of water in the province.

The LUAWMS and Mishal Pakistan formalised their pledge by signing a Memorandum of Understanding for the project titled Water Management Challenges in Balochistan at a ceremony on Tuesday.

Through the project, LUAWMS and Mishal will be bridging the information gap and promoting responsible consumption of water in private and public spheres.

The initiative will expand public policy options to improve the current state of water in the province.

The project is aimed at sharing knowledge with media, academia, farmers, civil society, private sector and the masses about water situation and its judicious use.

Speaking on the occasion, vice chancellor of the university Prof Dr Dost Mohammad Baloch said the project would help the province design and implement a robust action plan to preserve water for present and future generations.

He said his university would assist Mishal Pakistan in identifying areas for capacity building of key stakeholders by sharing research being done at the university.

It was observed at the event that the population of Balochistan had increased from 6.57 million as recorded by 1998 census to 12.34m in 2017, whereas during this time, water levels have dropped dramatically in some areas of Balochistan, causing residents to draw water from 1,000 feet below the ground level, compared to only 200 to 300 feet below the ground level that used to be the situation in the past.

Shabina Faraz, an award-winning journalist and CEO of the Green Media Initiatives, on the occasion said that climate change was one of the biggest threats faced by the planet.

The director for strategy at Mishal Pakistan, Amna Sabahat, said a preliminary assessment of the water situation in Balochistan demonstrated that the federal and provincial administrations needed support of all key stakeholders to preserve water resources and prepare the people for climate change.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2021