In 2022, under the Government of Nepal with the support of a team of water experts and a Task Force Team, a number of consultation workshops were organised with the participation of stakeholders from the government, non-government, academia, private sector and multi-lateral development partners. As a result, the Action Plan was developed with the objective to optimise the utilization of its water resources for a socially equitable and inclusive, environmentally secure and economically prosperous Nepal and to implement concrete actions for advancing Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). The following action was defined as part of that process and identified as a priority action included in the action plan.
The purpose of this action is to set up the baseline status of the freshwater ecosystem and aquatic biodiversity. It aims to achieve this goal by documenting the state of freshwater ecosystems and terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity. This mapping action will be done at all levels of government. In addition, it establishes a freshwater ecosystem information system in a GIS platform accessible to all concerned users. This action should be implemented by the Ministry of Forest and Environment (MoFE) and the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) as the lead agency with the support of relevant international organizations.
