Water management must be ensured for life: Moyeen Khan

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Moyeen Khan said on Thursday that a major crisis could emerge in the future unless proper water management is ensured.

The importance of water and proper water management must be considered in every aspect of the country’s development plans, as water could become one of the biggest challenges for Bangladesh and the world in the future, he added.

The minister came up with this observation at a meeting with a UNICEF delegation at his office in the Secretariat. 

They discussed safe and potable water supply, sanitation, addressing the impacts of climate change and ensuring safe water in coastal areas, among other issues.

The meeting was informed that projects worth around US$1.2 billion are currently being implemented by the Department of Public Health Engineering, WASA and LGED with the support of UNICEF.

Highlighting the importance of safe and potable water, Moyeen Khan said water is directly linked to people’s lives and security. 

Mentioning that water could become one of Bangladesh’s biggest challenges in the future and, globally, it could also pose a major challenge to humanity, he said adding therefore, proper water management must be ensured from now on.

Emphasising the need to learn from the experience of developed countries in water management, the minister said countries like Sweden realised the negative consequences of indiscriminate use of natural resources around 60 years ago. 

Bangladesh is currently facing a similar reality, he said, adding that the experience of such countries should be utilised to develop sustainable water management.

Moyeen Khan noted that water has a very close relationship with Bangladesh’s development and industrialisation, saying a huge amount of water is used particularly in the textile and garment industries. 

On the other hand, industrial waste is polluting water in many rivers and canals across the country, while coastal areas are also facing various water-related problems, he said.

He said Bangladesh must move forward on the path of development, but care must be taken to ensure that such development does not harm people’s lives and the environment. 

The minister said ensuring good housing alone is not enough; safe water and a healthy environment must also be ensured for residents. 

UNICEF Bangladesh Representative ad interim Gillian Mellsop, Deputy Country Representative (Programme) Emmanuelle Abrioux and other members of a 10-member delegation attended the meeting. 

Representatives of UNICEF, the World Bank and WaterAid were also present.

Director General of the Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Inspection Division Shibir Bichitra Barua and senior officials of the ministry were present.