Experts Urge Socially Just Water Governance at International Conference
Technical solutions alone cannot solve the water crisis, stressed experts and policymakers on the first day of the 11th International Water Conference in Bangladesh, held on 21 January. They emphasized that effective water management requires a framework grounded in social justice, gender equality, and environmental rights.
Organized by international development organization ActionAid Bangladesh, the two-day conference was held virtually under the theme “Rethinking Water Management for a Just and Sustainable Future.” The event gains special significance as Bangladesh, in 2025, became the first South Asian country to join the United Nations Water Convention.
The conference began with a musical tribute to the late artist Farida Parveen. In her opening remarks, ActionAid Bangladesh Country Director Farah Kabir highlighted, “Water governance is fundamentally about power, survival, and inequality. Long before policies are made, water determines people’s lives.” Citing the experience of a coastal woman, she added, “When water is saline, women walk long distances for potable water, and floods disrupt livelihoods. This is the reality—who decides, who adapts, and who bears the costs.”
While welcoming Bangladesh’s UN Water Convention membership as a milestone, she cautioned, “Legal commitments alone are not enough. Participation from local communities must be ensured from the start, not just as consultants at the end.”
In the keynote session, Dr. Imtiaz Ahmed, Executive Director of the Center for Alternatives, identified five global “dystopias” in water management. He urged reconceptualizing water as more than H₂O, suggesting the formula: Water (W) = H₂O + P4 (Pollution, Power, Politics, and Profit). He proposed viewing rivers as living entities, combining life, spirit, and energy, and recommended a ‘River-Lake Chief’ system to hold local officials accountable based on environmental outcomes.
Sakib Mahmud of the National River Conservation Commission (NRCC) outlined the dire state of Bangladesh’s rivers. “Although 1,415 rivers are identified, many are at risk. In cities like Dinajpur and Naogaon, we have found ‘dead zones’ where dissolved oxygen levels are insufficient for aquatic life,” he said. He criticized mismanaged dredging, where excavated soil is often dumped back into rivers, and advocated geo-spatial tracking and community-based monitoring.
Dr. Champa M Navaratne, Professor Emeritus at Ruhuna University, Sri Lanka, emphasized the failure of technical solutions when structural inequities are ignored. “Inclusion of women and marginalized farmers is essential. Without access to water rights and credit, technological solutions can become obstacles,” she noted.
Regarding urban water management, Farhad Reza, President of Build Bangladesh, warned against treating water as a commodity. He called for a shift from supply-driven engineering to inclusive management. Dr. Yang Hui of China’s Confucius Institute highlighted the “Dianchi Lake” restoration as an example, emphasizing that the key is changing mindsets: cities emerge as part of living water systems, not beside them.
The first day also featured a virtual exhibition on ‘Water Museums,’ showcasing Morocco’s Oasis Ecomuseum and Bangladesh’s first water museum in Kalapara, Patuakhali. Cultural presentations included songs in the Chakma language and a play, “Zion, the Enchanted Life River,” performed by the Palakar theatre group, highlighting the profound connection between water and life.
The day concluded with calls for a ‘hydro-social’ approach, integrating land use and population planning into water governance. On 22 January, the conference will conclude with discussions on the blue economy, transboundary rivers, and the presentation of the “Accountable Water Governance Dhaka Declaration” to ensure transparency and responsibility in water management.
Participants included ActionAid Bangladesh’s Just Energy Transition Manager Abul Kalam Azad, Dr. Ema Perio, Dr. Nuyen Ho Quyen, Anika N Haque, and over a hundred international and national river experts, researchers, policymakers, water rights activists, and climate protection practitioners.
DBTech/SRA/IK/OR
