Pakistan will require an estimated $18 billion in federal financing over the next ten years to improve its water infrastructure. The government intends to increase water use efficiency from 40 percent to 70 percent.
National water storage capacity is targeted to rise from 15.318 million acre feet to 23.54 million acre feet by 2029. Current live storage represents only 11 percent of the annual flows of the Indus River.
Projects under the Public Sector Development Programme are expected to add 9.821 million acre feet of storage capacity. A pipeline of proposed projects, including the Skardu Dam, Shyok Dam and Akhori Off Channel Storage Dam, could provide another 14.5 million acre feet.
The framework proposes a Water System Integrator function under the Indus River System Authority. Agriculture accounts for approximately 95 percent of freshwater withdrawals in the country.
Irrigation efficiency currently remains around 40 percent. Approximately 20.58 million acres of suitable agricultural land sit outside formal irrigation networks.
Groundwater levels across Punjab are falling by 0.5 to 1 metre annually. Pakistan aims to recycle at least 25 percent of urban wastewater.
The framework proposes declaring water security a national security priority.
