News and Activities

Karachi, one of the world's largest cities with a population of more than 14 million, as with the rest of Pakistan, was severely hit by the floods last summer. The Karachi Water Partnership (KWP), whose founding in 2007 was inspired by the GWP model, has, through the Hisaar Foundation, raised significant funding to address the longer-term issues related to flooding and water management.

As part of its response to last year’s devastating floods in the country, GWP Pakistan organised on 12 January 2011 a one-day seminar on water security in the face of climate change, with the support of the government’s Planning Commission and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

In 2009 the Uva Provincial Council and National Water Supply and Drainage Board sought help from GWP Sri Lanka to set up a provincial water resources committee. This request was prompted by a new government policy recommending that provincial water resources committees should be set up to manage drinking water at river basin scale.

In November 2010, GWP Sri Lanka organised a Climate Change Adaptation National Dialogue, a joint activity with the Centre for Climate Change Studies of the Department of Meteorology, the Disaster Management Centre, and the Ministry of Disaster Management. The Dialogue was a follow up to two earlier activities undertaken with respect to the Southern and North Central Provinces of Sri Lanka.

While Pakistan endures one of the country’s most devastating floods—possibly its worst ever—GWP Pakistan is joining with others to help provide relief and rehabilitation to remote communities that have been particularly hard-hit. In addition, the GWP Partner Hisaar Foundation and the Karachi Water Partnership, has launched an appeal to raise Rs 10 million for immediate flood relief, largely for the provision of safe drinking water.

For the first time the Government of India has selected a non-government organisation, GWP India West Zone Water Partnership (WZWP) Coordinating Agency, Gomukh Trust, to prepare an integrated water resources development and management plan.

The Menik Ganga Area Water Partnership (AWP) together with local and temple authorities, local traders and youth groups helped protect water supplies during the one-week Sella Kataragama festival in July.

Meetings of local water partnerships in June 2010 gave community groups in 45 villages in the Ramial and Indrajeet basins opportunities to present on-the-ground water issues that concerned them to revenue, irrigation, and agriculture and fisheries officials.

The Purna Area Water Partnership was established in 1995 and has since carried out extensive work in water resources development and management in the Purna River Basin, India.

GWP India has supported the formation of five local Water Management Committees in the district of Bihar.