“Demand for water will go up by 50pc by 2050”

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ministry Standing Committee Chairman Saber Hossain Chowdhury MP said the demand for water as a resource will go by nearly 50 percent by the year 2050. 

"By the year 2050 the demand for water will go up by 50 percent. Four billion people in this world will face water scarcity at least for a few months every year," he said. 

He was addressing as the chief guest in the closing ceremony of the 3-day-long 6th International Water Conference arranged by ActionAid Bangladesh, said a press release. 

Saber Hossain Chowdhury also mentioned that Covid-19 has made people rethink that water should be taken care of from a holistic point of view which ranges from the source to distribution, economic cycle, agriculture and then coming back to nature. 

He also noted that water can be issues of conflict. "Better water policies can ensure a better life for the people and the policy should be better informed," he added. 

International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCAD) Director Prof Saleemul Huq stated for every single area of this country water is the key part as Bangladesh is a deltaic country of three main rivers. 

"The Barendra areas are drought-prone and people are dependent on groundwater for their irrigation which is getting depleted," he added. 

Switzerland Ambassador to Bangladesh Nathalie Chuard said water as a common good and key natural resource, is vital for the bilateral relationship.

" We should learn to peacefully manage our common water and Covid-19 is a wakeup call that we cannot afford ignoring," Nathalie added. 

COP26 Asia Pacific and South Asia Regional Ambassador Ken O'Flaherty stated to achieve the sustainable development goal the UK need to help all countries and adaptation and resilience is the top priority for the UK government. 

Ken O'Flaherty also mentioned that the UK government has pledged 11.4 billion pounds over the next five years and aimed to spend half of that on adaptation. 

"The UK has announced Adaptation Action Coalition to drive the adaptation Bangladesh with its world-renowned adaptation is the key member of this coalition," he added. 

ActionAid Bangladesh Country Director Farah Kabir, in her closing remarks, stated, "We should shift from the land-centric to water-centric approach". 

As the women and the young girls are the key managers of household water resources, they should have access to water-related decision making, she added. 

Among others, Ibrahim Khalil Al-Zayad, Member, General Assembly, ActionAid International Bangladesh Society, Dr Bushra Nishat, Environmental Specialist, South Asia Region Environment Unit, World Bank, Dr Vanh Mixap, Prof Dr Liyan Zheng, Director, Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, China, and Prof Dr Imtiaz Ahmed, Department of International Relations, University of Dhaka were also present In this closing session.