Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has underscored the need for strong political will and global leadership to overcome the water crisis, posing existential threat to the nations around the globe.

Addressing the "One Water Summit" in Riyadh tonight, he underlined the need for international cooperation and collaboration to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

The Prime Minister said water is the lifeblood of the planet and a cornerstone of economic development, food security, and environmental sustainability. He said nearly half of the world’s population is facing water scarcity for at least part of the year. He also expressed regret that billions of population remains without clean drinking water and water pollution is rising at alarming levels.

The Prime Minister underlined that the water resources are fast depleting and degrading, which is displacing millions and causing unprecedented destruction.

Underlining the need of collective efforts to meet impacts of climate change and population growth, the Prime Minister said Pakistan is still grappling with the 2022 catastrophic floods that caused widespread damage to its water resources and irrigation sector in addition to affecting millions of lives and livelihoods.

He said, at the same time droughts posed an equally potent threat to the country. He said nearly seventy percent of our land consists of arid and semi-arid areas and around thirty percent of our population is directly affected by drought-like conditions.

He was of the view that projected temperature increases in Pakistan are significantly higher than the global average. He further said that such catastrophic disasters and challenges are likely to scale up further in the absence of concerted international actions as it was one of the top ten countries most vulnerable due to climate change.

Commenting on the Transboundary Water Management, the Prime Minister said that water transcended political boundaries, connecting nations and fostering shared ecosystems. He said that Pakistan attaches great importance to transboundary cooperation.

Shehbaz Sharif said Indus Water Treaty witnessed unprecedented challenges in the recent years due to a number of factors including construction of upstream dams, whereas its effective functioning was key to maintaining regional peace and stability.

Shedding light on the ‘Recharge Pakistan’ initiative, he said we are also finalizing a ‘National Drought Plan’ that identifies the most drought affected areas, and proposes effective response mechanisms to mitigate the impact of drought in these areas.

The Prime Minister proposed a six-point global agenda to address water-related challenges.

He called for international cooperation to ensure sustainable water and sanitation for all, share knowledge and expertise, and transfer innovative water management technologies. He also urged the developed countries to allocate adequate funding for climate-resilient infrastructure, overcoming the financing gap in vulnerable countries, and creating frameworks for transparency, data sharing, and regional cooperation to prevent conflicts and promote water sharing.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the importance of investing in skills development, research, and strengthening institutions to tackle water issues at both national and global levels.

Praising the leadership of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in establishing the Global Water Organization, he said Pakistan is proud to join as a founding member and offer our full support to its goals.

Shehbaz Sharif also expressed his profound gratitude to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, France, and Kazakhstan, as well as the World Bank for organizing the timely summit to deliberate upon water security, which is one of the most pressing challenges of humanity.