ECO Science Foundation (ECOSF) and Embassy of Tajikistan in Pakistan jointly organized with Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) a “Regional Dialogue on SDG 6 (Water and Sanitation)” on February 15th, 2017 at PCRWR, Islamabad
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ECO Science Foundation (ECOSF) and Embassy of Tajikistan in Pakistan jointly organized with Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) a “Regional Dialogue on SDG 6 (Water and Sanitation)” on February 15th, 2017 at PCRWR, Islamabad. The primary objective of holding this dialogue was to deliberate on water related issues and devise strategy for implementation of SDG 6 at the regional level.
The dialogue was well attended by researchers, scientists and policy makers from diverse backgrounds and water sector experts representing national, international and regional organizations and academia, notably Ministry of Climate Change, Ministry of Science and Technology, International Water Management Institute and International Center for Integrated Mountain Development, Mehran University of Engineering & Technology and University of Arid Agriculture Rawalpindi. The first technical session included the presentations by experts from Ministry of Climate Change, PCRWR, Planning Commission of Pakistan and ECO Science Foundation. While in the second part of the technical session, group discussions were held.
Mr. Muhammad Ashraf, Additional Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology, who was the Chief Guest at the event. Mr. Muhammad Ashraf appreciated the joint efforts of the organizers for holding this important dialogue and assured the full support for future endeavors to implement and achieve SDG’s 6.0.
Professor Dr. Manzoor Hussain Soomro, President ECO Science Foundation was the Keynote Speaker at the event. In his keynote address, he highlighted the importance of water, as it is a human right and has become a new oil, which fuels the engine for economy of any nation. Dr. Soomro underlined that ECO region is one of the high water stressed region in the world and despite this high scarcity, some Central Asian countries rank highest in per capita water consumption. He stressed that one must manage and use water resources very wisely, equitably and efficiently. Dr. Soomro further assured that ECO Science Foundation will continue to support research and technology ECO member countries in addressing challenges in water sector especially in line with UN SDG-6.
H.E Mr. Jononov Sherali, the Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan highlighted the issues and key achievements relating to water resources management in Tajikistan. He said that the regional and global cooperation for improving knowledge exchange, strengthening communication and networking for cooperation are the basic tools for achieving Sustainable Development Goals.
During the technical session, Mr. Khalil Raza, Scientific Officer, ECO Science Foundation also delivered his presentation on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Transforming our World for the Future. In his presentation, he underlined the importance as to how these SDGs can make Pakistan a better place. He shared the prospects of achieving the SDGs in Pakistan, but he said that Business As Asual (BAU) scenario will not get us there, as there is a need of strong commitment and workable implementation strategy to reach there by 2030. In addition, he talked about the transition that occurred from MDGs and SDGs. On referring to why the SDGs are much more well designed goals compared to MDGs, he said that SDGs incorporate Integrated Sustainable Development approach towards the future economic development.