Building more water reservoirs, restoring wetlands and promoting drought-tolerant crop varieties are vital for mitigating recurring and intensifying drought risks in the country.

This was stated by Spokesperson Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Muhammad Saleem Shaikh in a press release on Sunday.

He said ongoing severe winter drought, which has adversely affected winter sowing, particularly wheat in the country, is in fact a part of the larger trend of increasing climate variability that threatens to disrupt agriculture, exacerbate water shortages and elevate the risks of future droughts across the country.

He said that the country is currently grappling with an unusual winter drought because of 40 percent below normal rains between September 2024 to January 2025, which has put productivity of winter crops and livelihoods of farming communities at risk.

The spokesperson said due to acutely low rains, water stress has already exacerbated further in cultivated lands in Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, in particularly in rain-fed regions, due to the limited supply of irrigation water from the river system for Rabi crops.

Muhammad Saleem Shaikh highlighted that reduced water availability due to low rainfall was adversely impacting the growth of crops like wheat, a staple food as well as vital cash crops like potato, leading to fears of lower production and rising food prices and their shortages in future.

He said that the ongoing winter drought conditions in the country underscore the urgent need for a unified response to address the country’s water crisis.

He said that the national climate change policy has already highlighted that the country’s socioeconomic circumstances further augment its vulnerability to projected temperature increases, more variable rainfall patterns and a greater risk of more intense and frequent droughts.

Referring to national climate change policy recommendations for mitigation of drought impacts, Muhammad Saleem Shaikh emphasized that rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge and the adoption of modern irrigation methods like drip and sprinkler systems are no longer optional; they are critical tools in our survival weaponry.

The Ministry Spokesperson said that during last few years, there has been adequate research on developing new drought-tolerant high-yield varieties of crops in the country in collaboration with international agricultural research organizations.