KARACHI -  Pakistan’s water situation is so alarming that we need to jolt the government and ourselves into immediate corrective action on an urgent basis. To address this very dire challenge facing us, a conference bringing the leading international and national experts on water will share their views, findings and studies scheduled to be held in Karachi on November 21st and 22nd 2017. The Third Karachi International Water Conference: The Future of Water will be held on 21st November and 22nd November 2017 at a local hotel.

Zohair Ashir, Chairman of the Hisaar Foundation, gave a briefing on urgency of holding this dialogue which brings all the major stakeholders – government, academia, private and business sector, media, donors, NGOs and citizens of Pakistan on a single platform to build a consensus for a collective action plan. He highlighted the four major themes of the conference – rights and entitlements, science and technology, climate change and water economy. He also stated that it is a rare occasion that the leading international experts and organizations of water have come to Pakistan in recent times, this being one of largest international water conferences in the county.

He said among the leading figures who will attend this conference will be Dr David Grey, Visiting Professor of Water Policy at University of Oxford, Dr Salman Shah, former Finance Minister, Rudolph Cleveringa, Executive Secretary, Global Water Partnership, Dr Claudia Sadoff, Director-General IWMI, Dr Marianne Kjellen, Senior Water Advisor UNDP,  Dr Ishrat Hussain, former dean of the Institute of Business Administration, Khalid Mohtadullah, Senior Advisor to ICIMOD, Lt Gen Muzammil Hussain, Chairman WAPDA, Simi Kamal, Geographer and Water Specialist and many other prominent figures from the business world and civil society will present their views.

\Several hundred delegates are expected to participate in the conference, mostly from Pakistan but also from South Asia and across the globe. A diverse and rich variety of participants and organizers will bring a wide selection of water experts and professionals and also prominent members from other stakeholder sectors.  .

Aman ul Haque, Head of Engro Foundation, said, “Water is an existential threat to Pakistan. Without water we cannot grow crops, grow our industry and most importantly look after the health and well being of our people. Private sector along with civil society needs to work together with the government on a workable framework and come up with practical solutions to ensure a sustainable future.”

This major assembly of such leading cross-sectional leaders is being organized by Hisaar Foundation which is a purely citizen’s based movement with focus on water, food and livelihood security. The Foundation works through its programmes and projects to bring direct relief in water, food and livelihood in all areas of Pakistan.

It has established the first national level Think Tank on Rational Use of Water that is the first citizen’s body to develop recommendations for Pakistan’s National Water Policy Framework and also established the Universities for Water Network, the first network of public and private universities that work on water.