RECOMMENDATIONS ON INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IN WATER MANAGEMENT

A.K.M Halimur RAHMAN
Bangladesh

Effective water resource management needs to transcend national boundaries in many instances and it becomes imperative for countries to collaborate in matters of mutual interest. The now widely adopted Helsinki rules on the uses of waters of international rivers embrace the concept of drainage basin as an economic and geographical unit within which the water resources are treated as common property of all basin states. Each state is entitled, within its territory, to a reasonable and equitable share of the water and is obliged not to develop projects that would cause appreciable harm to another riparian state. Transboundary aquifers, in many cases, can also be treated as international drainage basins.

One of the areas where international collaboration could yield substantial benefit for collaborating partners is integrated basin and inter-basin water management when these stretch across multinational territory. This is an overriding consideration in the case of Bangladesh because all of its river basin, for the greater part, lie in India and Nepal. Basin management is a complex task and requires extensive study of hydrological and morphological characteristics of the terrain that underlie the territory of all three countries. Bangladesh consider the following recommendations essential, for effective way of managing water resources with international cooperation.

There should be collaborative programs for the sharing and joint development of international water basins by riparian states.

There must be free information and data sharing between riparian countries to help each other in managing disasters like flood and drought.

There should be joint assessment of international river resources by riparian countries for developing overall basin potentials, because in countries that embody only a small part of the total catchment area or in adjoining countries where the river forms the boundary, separate assessment may have little value.

Riparian countries should form joint river basin organisation to act as central clearing house for planning, water sharing, and the preparation and execution of jointly-owned projects.

Development of international rivers should be done within the perspective of international water laws, which state the river itself needs the use of its water for maintaining its eco-system (preserving fish habitat, removing silts, etc.). The Sundarban Areas of Bangladesh have been designated as a World Heritage site and it is essential to maintain supply of freshwater to these areas by revival of the South-western rivers of Bangladesh.

International collaboration in catchment management, with the help of afforestation and erosion control, must be promoted for watershed preservation and reduction of land degradation.

Riparian countries should jointly prevent chemical and biological pollution of international rivers, by managing the discharge of industrial, agricultural and other pollutants generated by human action.