ISLAMABAD: The Federal Water Management Cell (FWMC), an entity tasked with managing water resources, will cease to function from April 1 as the government looks to cut the size of the bloated bureaucracy.

FWMC, the only federal body addressing water management issues at the national and international levels, was part of the Ministry of National Food Security & Research (MNFSR).

A notification issued by the ministry the other day said that out of FWMC’s sanctioned strength of 39, 30 posts were filled. The officials have now been placed in the surplus pool of the establishment division for further postings.

The nine vacant posts will be treated as abolished.

Prior to the devolution under the 18th Amendment, a fully functional water management department operated at the federal level.

FWMC officials placed in surplus pool of bureaucrats; several depts of food security ministry in line for closure

Following the devolution, the department was reduced to a small cell in the MNFSR.

After the 18th Amendment, food and agriculture were made provincial subjects, leaving the food security ministry with little capacity to intervene on these issues. Last year, the Senate Functional Committee on Devolution recommended the full devolution of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to provinces.

FWMC is one of the several departments of the food security ministry likely to be placed on the chopping block as part of the rightsizing efforts in compliance with IMF directives.

Last week, the ministry finalised arrangements to get rid of the wheat stocked by the Pakistan Agricultural Storage & Services Corporation Ltd, which is also being shut down.

A fully functional technical wing of the ministry, providing critical support in policy formulation, legal frameworks, and agricultural development, is also being dismantled, posing a severe risk to the operation of the MNFSR.

After the creation of the MNFSR, these technical wings were re-established and food security experts and agriculturists were hired.

The ministry has also decided to wind up the National Fertiliser Development Corporation, which is responsible for monitoring the demand and supply of fertilisers essential for various crops.

The corporation provides forecasts for fertiliser needs and assesses national and international fertiliser markets.

Its experts and staff have either been placed in the surplus pool of bureaucrats or offered early retirement. The Pakistan Oilseed Department, the Livestock Board and the Fisheries Development Board, all under the MNFSR, are also likely to be abolished.

The government is also considering merging the Pakistan Central Cotton Committee (PCCC) with the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council.

The country’s textile industry, which contributes 80 per cent of the national exports, relies on raw materials supplied through PCCC.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2025