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Pakistan's land and water resources will be protected under an SDR 93.674 million ($140 million equivalent) loan approved today by the Asian Development Bank for a national drainage sector project.
The interest-free loan, from the Bank's concessional Asian Development Fund, is repayable in 35 years, with a grace period of 10 years, and carries a service charge of one per cent per annum.
Waterlogging and salinity are affecting about 14 percent and 19 percent of the 16.2 million hectares (ha) of irrigated land that supplies 90 percent of Pakistan's total agriculture produce. To correct this situation, the Government has instituted a National Drainage Program (NDP).
The Project is an integral part of NDP which is designed to protect irrigated land and preserve surface water and groundwater quality. It will control and reduce waterlogging and salinity and improve the management of surface water and groundwater resources by laying the groundwork for minimizing the drainable surplus and evacuating excess water and salts.
To achieve this objective, NDP will firm up an overall drainage strategy and continue detailed planning of an environmentally acceptable solution to the disposal of agricultural, urban and industrial drainage effluent; and introduce policy reforms related to the water sector, restructure key sector institutions and build up their capacity. NDP will also improve the planning and programming of water resources projects; improve the drainage conditions for about 5 million ha; provide drainage for the diversion of saline effluent away from Pakistan's inland wetlands; and provide research resources to resolve important remaining technical issues in drainage.
The Ministry of Water and Power, the Water Wing of the Water and Power Development Authority, the Provincial Irrigation and Drainage Authorities, Water Boards, Farmer Organizations, and the On-farm Water Management Wings of the Provincial Agriculture Departments will be executing agencies of the Project.