Inadequate PSDP allocation ‘adding to water woes’

Water-sector allocation in 2017-18 stands at 3.7% which is the lowest in two decades

ISLAMABAD: A major reason behind the prevailing water crisis in Pakistan is inadequate allocation for water sector in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).

As a result of low allocations, there has been virtually no increase in the total cropped area of 55 million acres in the past two decades, government documents available with The Express Tribune reveal.

According to the documents, since the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government took over, there has been a continuous drop in the PSDP allocation for water sector and the share for the sector has remained below 11% of the total size of the PSDP.

The documents reveal that in 2017-18, the federal PSDP allocated only 3.7% (out of the total size of the (PSDP)  for water sector which is the lowest in the last two decades, followed by 4% in 2016-17, 4.3% in 2015-16 and 8.5% in 2014-15.



The highest PSDP allocation during the PML-N tenure for the sector was 10.7% in 2013-14 – the time the ruling party had taken over. However, during previous governments, the water sector allocation in the federal PSDP has fluctuated from 6.9% to 18%.

During the last 18 years, the highest allocation in the PSDP for water sector was 18% in 2006-07, followed by 17% in 2005-2006 and 13% in 2009-10.

Talking to The Express Tribune, an official said that in view of the prevailing water crisis in the country, the Ministry of Water Resources had demanded an allocation of Rs203.7 billion in the PSDP for 2018-19.

“Without having ample amount of funding for water sector, it is not possible for the government to address water woes in the country,” the official said, adding that the country’s major source of income, i.e. agriculture “is entirely based on water availability”.



He mentioned numerous important water-related projects that are facing delay mainly because of lack of funding.

“It is about time the government adopted a serious approach and focused, with full commitment, on the issues pertaining to water management and conservation… otherwise time is not too far when Pakistan will turn from a water-stressed country to a water-scarce country,” he said.