Water Resource Accountability in Pakistan (WRAP)

IWMI is implementing Component 1 of FCDO’s Water Resource Accountability in Pakistan (WRAP) programme. The long-term goal of IWMI’s project is to strengthen capacity to manage water resources at federal, provincial and district levels. Potential institutions that will be supported under the project include the Provincial Planning and Development Department, water resources commissions, water regulatory authorities, irrigation, and on-farm water management departments. IWMI’s project will also improve the enabling environment for water sector reforms through better accountability, monitoring and narrative setting. Women, youth, and marginalized people will be specifically targeted with their engagement, inputs and roles.

The programme has three core components including:

Component 1:  Climate Resilient Solutions for Improving Water Governance (CRS-IWaG): is being implemented by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

Component 2: Nature-based Solutions (NbS): is being implemented by the Worldwide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF Pakistan).

Component 3: Catalytic Fund: is being implemented by Oxford Policy Management (OPM) aiming to demonstrate upscale new innovative solutions to challenges in water resource management.

About IWMI’s Climate Resilient Solutions for Improving Water Governance Project

The current water governance mechanism of Pakistan is a colonial legacy that does not meet the complex water management challenges of the Indus River Basin which have been further exacerbated with climate change. The critical water security issues in Pakistan include poor governance; poor water data, information, and analysis; weak water resource planning and allocation; unsustainable groundwater extraction; and low agricultural water productivity. In addition, local communities are primarily absent from decision-making processes and water governance mechanisms. Country’s high vulnerability against climate induced water risks and disasters, such as droughts and floods, has highlighted the urgency for climate resilient solutions and improved water governance at federal and provincial levels.

This project aims to strengthen the capacity to manage water resources at the federal, provincial, and district levels. At the federal level, the project is improving water governance in the Indus Basin to support implementing national policies (e.g., water and climate change). Similarly, under the provincial component, the project aims for better ‘use’ of water within Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and how it is shared around priority ‘usage’ areas to support implementation of the Punjab Water Act 2019 and KP Water Act 2020.

This project is aligned with the United Kingdom (UK) and Pakistan governments’ climate-resilient efforts and aims to revolutionize water management in Pakistan. It is envisaged to generate the evidence needed for implementing the National and provincials (Punjab and KP) climate and water policies and acts. This is in collaborations with various government departments, both at federal and provincial levels. IWMI is working in four pilot districts i.e. Okara and Chakwal in Punjab and Charsadda and Mansehra in KP.