Professor Asif Nazrul of Dhaka University on Sunday criticised the reluctance of major upstream countries in South Asia to engage in collaborative river management with downstream nations.
He made the remark while moderating the session “Rights of the River: Integrated Basin Management” during the second day of the 9th International Water Conference in Dhaka.
The conference, with the theme “Water, River and Climate Change: Creating Space for Resilience,” concluded on Thursday.
Professor Nazrul argued that existing water agreements are often reactive solutions to accommodate unilateral projects undertaken by upstream or powerful countries.
These countries typically prefer bilateral approaches to resolving water and river disputes, hindering broader regional cooperation.
“If we look into the South Asian Water sharing treaties, we see that most of them are periodical treaties for a selective timeframe, which we do not see in other parts of the world.
“All the basin states must find a fair way of water allocation to avoid disagreement. Also, there must be a regional framework for comprehensive data sharing regarding water resource management,” he added.
Embassy of Sweden Development Cooperation First Secretary and Deputy Head Nayoka Martinez-Bäckström stressed the inclusion of young people in water relation discussion and climate justice movement.
She also emphasised youth-led enterprise for sustainable water management.
In the session, BRAC University Emeritus Professor Ainun Nishat said that in climate and water negotiations, it’s imperative to understand the politics at play.
“Climate change significantly impacts food security, and water is essential for ensuring this security. By understanding climate politics well, we can strongly stand for climate justice,” the professor of the Centre for Climate Change and Environmental Research (C3ER) added.
WaterAid South Asia Regional Director Khairul Islam, in the ‘River, Resilience, and People’ session said, “Most of the civilisations started on the bank of the rivers. What we are seeing now is that the condition of the river is deteriorating.
The majority of climate change is human-made or caused by the people. Water is the lifeline of the people, and we are polluting it. If we become conscious and more responsible, we can revert and improve this situation. We should find ways to save water bodies.”
Embassy of Bangladesh in the Netherlands Ambassador M Riaz Hamidullah, “If we are to look for a solution-driven approach, we have to understand Delta plan is not a guideline. A plan has to marry with the future of the economy and urbanisation of the country. I do not see the knowledge institutions to inform projects.”
“We need to reach out to the public and private spheres, which are the kind of water scenarios we are to encounter in the future. We are driven by the dominant narrative that Bangladesh is a water-abundant country. We need to move away from this narrative,” the ambassador further added.
This year the conference emphasised ten thematic areas- Understanding the nexus of climate change and rights of rivers; Climate change and rivers: Risk and vulnerabilities; Development, inclusion and resilience; Water, river, and urban resilience: Infrastructure and ecosystem;
River, resilience, and people; Rights of the river: Integrated basin management; Multilateral water cooperation and governance; Living museums and community resilience; Water and river: Engagement young people; Sustainable future: Crafting technical solution.
