ICIMOD along with key government organisations in the water supply sector were invited by the President of Nepal, Right Honorable Bidhya Devi Bhandari to a consultation meeting regarding the deteriorating water scarcity situation in many parts of Nepal. ICIMOD was the only International organisation invited to the consultation and was represented by Arun Bhakta Shrestha, Mandira Singh Shrestha and Nand Kishor Agrawal.

According to theDepartment of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM), this year, the winter rain in Nepal has been only 45% of the normal amount. The low winter rain along with late pre-monsoon rainfall has aggravated water availability resulting in an acute drinking water shortage and agriculture production.

ICIMOD representatives suggested that water scarcity should be addressed with long-term strategies and best dealt with as climate change adaptation. They indicated the need to strengthen the capacity to make short-term and seasonal forecasts. The president was briefed on ICIMOD’s experience in addressing water scarcity at the community level such as drought monitoring, spring management, solar pump and Climate Smart Village. Preparedness, education and awareness along with early warning systems play an important role in mitigating adverse impacts. ICIMOD expressed a readiness to support the government in tackling the problem of water scarcity.

The RH President showed keen interest in the work done by ICIMOD. She emphasized the importance of research into practice to bring the knowledge generated widely to the local level. She expressed the need to interact separately on how to benefit from the experiences of ICIMOD, including on Chure conservation.

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