Sangat Sindh Report on Seminar on Safe Drinking Water Policy Report

8/9/2019 Sangat Sindh Report on Seminar on Safe Drinking Water Policy Report

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District Level Consultation on

Safe Drinking Water and

National Drinking Water Policy

Wednesday, June 24, 2009, Nawabshah

Organized by: Supported by:

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District Level Consultation on

Safe Drinking Water and NationalDrinking Water Policy

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Nawabshah

Narrative Report

Supported by:

SANGAT Development FoundationHead Office :

Flat# 7, Second Floor Sharif Building, Market Road,Nawabshah, SindhPhone & Fax: 02440292758, Cell: 0334-3475360Email: [email protected] , [email protected]

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mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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The elected representatives, political leaders, women activists, journalists, governmentofficials and social activists of the district Nawabshah called the National DrinkingWater Policy as the "document of hollow claims and contradictions". They expressedtheir concerned on the National Drinking Water Policy 2007 and demanded acomprehensive National Level Policy on Safe Drinking Water which represents thegenuine concerns and also offer sustainable solution for the safe drinking water problemsof all local stakeholders especially the vulnerable segments of the society at the grassroot level.

They expressed their concerns in a District Level Consultation on "Safe Drinking Water

and National Drinking Water Policy" organised by Sangat Development Foundation withcollaboration of Actionaid, International Pakistan, on June 24, 2009, in Nawabshah.

The District Level Consultation Program was addressed by Abdul Rauf Khan TalukaNazim Nawabshah, Prof. Abdul Karim Bhatti Principal SZABIST, Nawaz Ali DomkiTaluka Municipal Officer (TMO) Nawabshah, Ali Bux Umrani District Officer (DO)Community Development Department (CDD) Nawabshah, Masood A. Jamali ProjectDirector Quaid Awam University of Science and Technology (QUEST), Ali Asghar

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Kalri Taluka Municipal Officer (TMO) Sakrand, Usama Unwer Manager WWF,Nawabshah, Tasleem Gaho, Naziran Khaskheli Women and Political Activist, ShakeelSohtra Minority Wing Nawabshah, Nisar A. Brohi Director SANGAT, Riaz H. SharDistrict Officer (DO) Population Welfare, Dr. Zulfiqar Shahani Focal person of Executive Health Officer (EDO Health) Salih Billo Senior Journalist, Wali M. JokhioVillage Development Society Taluka Daulatpur and also a large number of othercommunity representatives.

They further said the current National Drinking Water Policy has been developedwithout consultation with the local communities and their representatives as well as localgovernment officials. The most of the local government officials, elected representativesand the other local stakeholders are not even aware of the policy and its framework.

The National Drinking Water Policy should be consulted with all stakeholders at thelocal level, because the local communities do understand in a better way of their safe

drinking water problems and their possible solutions.

The majority of the urban and rural community at present facing serious safe drinkingwater problems, which has resulted into various deadly diseases in vulnerable andmarginalised segments of the society, frequent victims are the women and children in thedistrict.

However, there is a need to effectively address the genuine concerns of the localcommunity and possibly provide them safe drinking water facilities to the localvulnerable communities of the district.

There is also need to develop a comprehensive safe drinking water and sanitationawareness and education campaign in the remote rural areas in order to involve the ruraland remote areas communities in the efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs).

Recommendations On the Policy

A comprehensive National Drinking Water Policy should be redesigned throughconsultations with all local concerned stakeholders and local line departments atthe district level

The participation and involvement of the local communities especially thevulnerable segments of society should be ensured in all local level activities of the National Drinking Water Policy

The community mobilization activities has been proposed in the current NationalDrinking Water Policy document but having passed two years, no suchmobilization efforts have been made, therefore, in order to ensure the

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sustainability of the results of the policy, the local community should bemobilized and actively involved in all activities at local level

The government should provide accessibility of safe drinking water andsanitation facilities to the local community, make them secure from possible

deadly water borne and hygiene related diseases

Special efforts should be made for the vulnerable segments of the society i.e.women and children who have more sufferings

The un-served and marginalised communities should be given more focused andpriority in all national and local level polices and plannings with regards to safedrinking water supply and sanitation initiatives

Special efforts should be made to ensure the safe drinking water quality supply inthe local areas specially in rural and remote rural areas, where due to unsafe andcontaminated drinking water, the local communities are hosting various deadlydiseases

The local community and other concerned stakeholders should be involved in the"Surveillance Agencies" with view to regularity check and ensure the StandardQuality of Drinking Water at the local level

It has been noticed that due to lack of technical and expert staff in the locallyestablished offices of Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources(PCRWR), proper and standardized testing of the water is not undertaken,therefore, sustained efforts should be made to equip the (PCRWR) offices withexpert staff and required equipments as the proper and standardized testingresults of the safe drinking water to be ensured

The sub offices of Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR)should also be established at the union council level, as the rural communityshould have easy access of getting tests of their drinking water

The water filter plants which have been installed at the different Union Councilsof the district are not properly working, therefore, quality of the filer plants

should be ensured

The water filter plants which have been installed due to political affiliations andleanings in such areas where it is not required, should immediately be cancelledand to be installed in such areas where there is dire need of it.

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Public-Private Partnership bonds should be made more effective and stronger asthe local community to be provided timely possibly relief in the provision of safedrinking water and sanitation activities

The local CBOs, NGOs and CCBs representatives should be involved in all safe

drinking water related initiatives at the local level to ensure the quality and timelycompletion of all locally launched projects on safe drinking water

The sufficient allocation and timely release of funds should be made to theconcerned local government line departments for the undertaking the safedrinking water and sanitation projects get effectively operationalised within duecourse of time

Capacity building and sensitization programs should be organised for the localgovernment officials and staff and local community to make them aware and

capable to manage the safe drinking water and sanitation problems and theirpossible solutions

Sustained efforts should be taken for the local institutional capacity building asthey could properly and efficiently deal with safe drinking water and hygienicproblems

Shortage of water due to low flow of water from upper stream, the localcommunities are compelled to drink contaminated water which has resulted intovery serious diseases such as kidney failure problems, hepatitis, diarrhea,dysentery etc, therefore, special arrangements should be made to provide safedrinking water to the local communities as their water borne problems/diseases tobe reduced

Arsenic in drinking water is the major issue in local water drinking resources,which requires special attention and efforts to deal with it immediately and toprovide non arsenic drinking water to the local community

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Documents

Sangat Sindh Report on Seminar on Safe Drinking Water Policy Report