Management of water resources in South Asia is complex. One billion people, including some of the poorest in the region in Pakistan, Nepal, India and Bangladesh (as well as Myanmar and China), depend on flows from the Himalayas for their livelihoods and wellbeing. Access to water from the twelve major river basins can hinge on cooperation with neighbouring governments. Extreme environmental factors such as glacial floods, droughts and earthquakes further complicate the picture.
Australia is a world leader on water resource management. Australia’s water management tools have the potential to help to manage water stress and poverty in developing countries. Sharing these tools and knowledge will help to build capacity and improve investment planning in water management, as well as assisting in climate change adaptation and disaster risk management.
Trans-boundary water resource management is a priority for AusAID’s South and West Asia regional program. Regional cooperation on water management has the potential to mitigate against the more extreme effects of climate change in the region and contribute to improvements in quality of life for hundreds of millions of people. Most importantly, it is essential for long-term water and food security for the region.
AusAID is supporting a number of initiatives. We are working with regional organisation such as the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), and partnering with the World Bank on the South Asia Water Initiative. We will also support civil society initiatives in the region.
In partnership with the International Centre of Excellence in Water Resources Management (ICEWARM), AusAID is bringing together Australian water experts with their counterparts in the region to explore opportunities for technical collaboration in water management. At a recent workshop in Canberra, representatives from the CSIRO, eWater, Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, Murray Darling Basin Authority, the National Water Commission and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology met with officers of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, the Institute of Water Modelling (Dhaka), the Indian Institute of Technology (New Delhi), AusAID and the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.
In October 2012, the prime ministers of Australia and India announced the India–Australia Water, Science and Technology Partnership.
More information
• AusAID at work in South and West Regional Asia