The big problem with water

In reality terrorism and extremism unpleasant as they are have never presented a truly existential threat to Pakistan. Neither has come close to bringing down the edifices of state and neither shows that capacity on current form nor is likely to in the foreseeable future. But the water problem just might do what all the forces of darkness have as yet failed to do. Pakistan has a water problem that is across every aspect of supply and demand — from Himalayan glacier melt, to flooding, to drought, to desertification and loss of arable land to the economic and social damage detailed in a report compiled by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR).

As water disappears and the quality of potable water declines, scarcity and water-borne diseases are having a costly and catastrophic effect with a cumulative annual national loss of income calculated at Rs28 billion or about 0.6-1.44 of GDP. As the residents of Karachi and some other large cities are aware the lack of drinkable water has given rise to a whole criminal subculture. The PCRWR tested water in 25 cities and found the groundwater to be increasingly contaminated with chemical pollutants and bacteria. Elsewhere and for those that have to drink contaminated water the organisation Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) estimates — credibly — that water-related disease is costing the economy around Rs112 billion a year or Rs300 million a day.

The UN Commission on Sustainable Development says that in Pakistan 200,000 children a year die from diarrheal diseases alone. The total number of civilians, security force personnel, and terrorists to die between 2003 and 24^th September 2017 is 62,483. Those figures alone should give any government pause for thought when it comes to evaluating and responding to the threats faced by the state. Despite the writing on the wall being in neon letters there is little by way of a concerted and coordinated effort to address a problem that is killing hundreds of thousands every year. Water problem? What water problem?

Published in The Express Tribune, September 27^th, 2017.

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