LAHORE – The International Water Management Institute, which has a regional office in Pakistan, has been named the Stockholm Water Prize Laureate for 2012. Awarded by the Stockholm International Water Institute, this prestigious prize honors individuals, institutions or organizations whose work contributes broadly to the conservation and protection of water resources and to the improved health of the planet’s inhabitants and ecosystems. IWMI is the first international research institution to have received this accolade.
“We are delighted that the hard work of everyone at IWMI has been recognized in this way,” said Cohn Chartres, Director General of the Institute. “This is unquestionably the single most important international award in the water sector. To have won it, is outstanding and a testament to the professionalism and dedication of everyone at IWMI, past and present, and the many partners we have worked alongside.” IWMI was founded in 1985 as an irrigation research institute and later expanded its activities to explore more broadly how the needs of various water users could be met to help alleviate poverty, protect the environment and improve food security. IWMI currently employs over 300 staff and has regional offices in 10 countries. In Pakistan, the Institute has worked actively since 1986 with many partners in the water sector to address such pressing issues as:food security and poverty; environmental degradation; groundwater and conjunctive use of water; land and water productivity; and adaptation to climate change. Some key achievements in the region have included: salinity management and groundwater governance and implementation of Participatory Irrigation Management.