Describing water as a wealth, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said it can no longer be a free input and infinite resource to production or development.“Water can no longer be a free input and infinite resource to production or development. Water has to be approached as a most critical global common in respect of sustainable development,” she said while addressing an event here titled ‘World’s Underwater’ at Congress Centre of BetaZone.Terming water technology crucial, the Prime Minister called for ensuring greater access to technologies, support to develop adaptive solutions in improving water use efficiency across the entire chain of production and processing. “In climate change context that is when we can develop less water-intensive, stress-tolerant varieties.”
She also underscored the need for further efforts to facilitate trans-boundary agreements and joint governing institutions for all basins and aquifers, saying collaboration on water demands ‘mutual trust’ and ‘respect’ among peoples, states and business.Sheikh Hasina stressed the importance of cooperation in freshwater and oceanic resources as an equaliser in addressing inequalities, and collaboration on developing and utilising trans-boundary freshwater resources that can make great economics great.”Collaboration on water demands mutual trust and respect among peoples, states and business. We must approach collaboration in terms of securing shared prosperity through shared responsibility, securing win-win outcome and equitable benefit-sharing among the all states and communities,” she said.She also mentioned Bangladesh’s peaceful delimitation of its maritime boundaries with Myanmar and India in the Bay of Bengal.The Prime Minister said Bangladesh industry is trying to source cost-effective solutions and technologies to transform and be responsible partner in global supply chains. “But, if innovative solutions or technologies are prohibitive, neither states not business gain,” she said.Noting that collaboration on developing and utilising trans-boundary freshwater resources can make great economics great, the Prime Minister underlined the need for addressing pollution, declining environmental flows and watershed degradation to secure river basin resources and eco-systems.”Trans-boundary rivers, wetlands and watersheds are precious wealth in any region. Trans-boundary waters drive economic growth, ensure social development, secure political stability and determine cross-border engagements,” she said.She mentioned that though sharing of trans-boundary river water is often complex two decades back, Bangladesh succeeded to enter into a long-term sharing arrangement with India on the Ganges waters. “We would need more efforts to facilitate trans-boundary agreements and joint governing institutions for all basin and aquifers. Moving on trans-boundary water collaboration also demands visionary leadership and ability to manage populism,” she said.Noting that cooperation in freshwater and oceanic resources can serve as an equaliser in addressing inequalities, Hasina said for many coastal and island countries like Bangladesh and, ability to tap and utilise freshwater and marine resources define bulk of people’s living existence.She said private sector’s increasing interest in water resources is encouraging. “Many business hold critical knowledge – science – data that we need desperately. Any solution will have to be beneficial, affordable and sustainable to large majority of our poor and marginal people.”Predicting that around 48 percent of Bangladesh population will live in urban space by 2030, the Prime Minister said, “So, we’re focusing more on the sub-national actors. And, we’re ready to consider any form of partnership between global capital and knowledge providers and our local and community actors on waters.”
source:UNB
