Provision Of Clean Drinking Water; A Matter Of Our Survival

Provision of clean drinking water; a matter of our survival

According to a recent World Bank report, clean water is a key factor for economic growth

Karachi (Pakistan Point News - 03rd October, 2019) According to a recent World Bank report, clean water is a key factor for economic growth. Deteriorating water quality is stalling economic growth, worsening health conditions, reducing food production, and exacerbating poverty in many countries. Unfortunately, Pakistan is currently one of the worst three countries in the world in terms of availability of clean drinking water.
Karachi, the largest city of Pakistan along with Nigeria’s city Lagos are two cities of the world where majority of the population use unsafe water, due to government’s inability to provide piped water to a majority of its population.

To make the situation worse, the population that is getting piped water is also suffering as the water supply is irregular and the quality of water is not fit for human consumption,consequently, making the people pay for it separately.
According to a survey done in 15 developing cities by the World Resource Institute’s Ross Center for Sustainable Cities, Karachi and Bengaluru are two cities where the average availability of piped water supply is three days a week for less than three hours.

The actual water supply in various areas of Karachi isa lot less than this calculated average. Even the elite areas of the city, like The Defence Housing Authority (DHA), are not safe from this curse and tend to go without water for days at a stretch.
Given the situation, the residents have resorted to other means, such as getting water delivered privately through water tankersto fulfill their needs. This not only increases expenditure but also the threat of suffering from various stomach ailments, such as diarrhea among others.

Piped utility water is the least expensive option for most households, but unfortunately a vast majority of households are deprived of this facility.
At present, Karachi isfacing a massive tug of war between Provincial, Federal and City governments; all blaming each other for the worsening water issues of the city, but doing nothing to resolve it. Non-availability of water is not the problem of a single city like Karachi only, but it is a countrywide issue.

According to a report byWater Resource Initiative, Pakistan ranks at 14thon the list of 17 most water stressed countries of the world. The startling reality being, one fourth of the world’s population lives in these water stressed countries!
Pakistan is striving hard to become a polio free country;however, the use of contaminated water is one of the major hindrances in making Pakistan a polio free country.It is the responsibility of authorities to provide access to clean water for drinking and domestic use to the people of Pakistan, but unfortunately the government is failing to fulfill its promises.


In lieu of authorities’ failure, it is the corporate world that is stepping forward and playing its role. The Coca-Cola Export Corporation (TCCEC) is one such company which is playing an active role in providing clean drinking water to the communities. Coca-Cola Pakistan in partnership with Rotary International is running a social well-being project titled ‘Zindagi’ in collaboration with UNDP Pakistan. This project aims to provide clean drinking water to those parts of Sindh, Punjab, and KPK where public is at a high risk of contracting communal and waterborne diseases.

More than 120,000 people have so far benefited from this project including around 41,000 children, who now have sustainable access to clean water, safe for drinking and domestic consumption.
Coca-Cola Pakistan is providing a grant of Rs. 19 million to the Indus Earth Trust for a project titled ‘Water for Women’, focusing on water access, conservation and replenishment of ground water and rainwater, in Kohistan Union Council area of District Thatta.

The project will especially focus on the local women, who presently are tasked with the duty of fetching water, walking several kilometers to perform this arduous task, even in the hot summer months. The project will benefit about 600 households in approximately 40 villages, and targets United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals 3 (Better health and Wellbeing) and 6 (Clean water and Sanitation).
The project will focus on water harvesting through lined water reservoirs and rehabilitation of some existing dug wells, through brick-lining, capping, and installation of hand pumps.

The extracted water will be collected in covered tanks and then distributed through channels for household use, kitchen gardening, and troughs for the livestock.The highlight of this project is that it will lessen the burden on women who have to travel 8 to 10 kilometerseach day to fetch water for their householduse.
Water replenishment remains a priority goal of Coca-Cola throughout the world. This is a part of the pledge made by The Coca-Cola Company in 2007, to give back to the environment all the water consumed by their business by 2020.

The target was long achieved in 2015, however, keeping the well-being of the environment and the people of Pakistan in view, TCC is continuing its efforts to give back more than its commitment.
As a result of these development and knowledge-based interventions, an improvement in emotional well-being and overall health is expected amongst 70% of the target population, especially amongst women; which is a positive step forward towards improving the overall standard of living of thousands of men, women and children living in these underprivileged and underserved areas.
Although corporates are playing a positive role in providing clean drinking water to the public, it is the government that needs to step forward and play an aggressive role for the provision of clean drinking water to the population of Pakistan.