Food and water crisis in pakista
18 March 2011
Pakistan’s Food and Water Crisis: ‘More Detrimental to
Security than Extremism’
Sergei DeSilva-Ranasinghe
FDI Senior Analyst
Summary
Over the coming years and decades, Pakistan will face the real prospect of serious food and water shortages if the challenges posed by climate change and the overexploitation of natural resources are not effectively and comprehensively managed. In this context, the manifold challenges that face Pakistan require not only a concerted strategy and significant resources, but also strong support from the international community.
Analysis
In addition to facing serious political instability, Pakistan is deemed to be at significant risk from climate change, with issues such as rising sea levels, melting glaciers, floods, rising average temperatures, greater variability in rainfall and prolonged droughts. These problems have been compounded by decades of unregulated deforestation, which has had a telling effect on the country’s forestry resources. In 1947, at the time of independence, nearly 25 per cent of Pakistan was covered by forest. Today, due to the rapid increase in unplanned urbanisation and agriculture, only around five per cent of Pakistan is forest-clad. The consequences of such rapid deforestation have serious environmental implications, leading to soil erosion, rising saline-sodic levels and desertification.
Although Pakistan enjoyed an abundance of water decades ago, it has since moved towards increasing water shortages. Primarily, the evidence suggests that the consumption of water is due to the growing demands of agriculture. According to a recent United States
Congressional Research Service study, Security and the Environment in Pakistan, agriculture accounts for an estimated 97 per cent of Pakistan’s total water usage. According to the
Pakistan Economic Survey 2009-10, agriculture employs 45 per cent of the country’s labour force, making it Pakistan’s largest employer.
At present,
Pakistan’s Food and Water Crisis: ‘More Detrimental to
Security than Extremism’
Sergei DeSilva-Ranasinghe
FDI Senior Analyst
Summary
Over the coming years and decades, Pakistan will face the real prospect of serious food and water shortages if the challenges posed by climate change and the overexploitation of natural resources are not effectively and comprehensively managed. In this context, the manifold challenges that face Pakistan require not only a concerted strategy and significant resources, but also strong support from the international community.
Analysis
In addition to facing serious political instability, Pakistan is deemed to be at significant risk from climate change, with issues such as rising sea levels, melting glaciers, floods, rising average temperatures, greater variability in rainfall and prolonged droughts. These problems have been compounded by decades of unregulated deforestation, which has had a telling effect on the country’s forestry resources. In 1947, at the time of independence, nearly 25 per cent of Pakistan was covered by forest. Today, due to the rapid increase in unplanned urbanisation and agriculture, only around five per cent of Pakistan is forest-clad. The consequences of such rapid deforestation have serious environmental implications, leading to soil erosion, rising saline-sodic levels and desertification.
Although Pakistan enjoyed an abundance of water decades ago, it has since moved towards increasing water shortages. Primarily, the evidence suggests that the consumption of water is due to the growing demands of agriculture. According to a recent United States
Congressional Research Service study, Security and the Environment in Pakistan, agriculture accounts for an estimated 97 per cent of Pakistan’s total water usage. According to the
Pakistan Economic Survey 2009-10, agriculture employs 45 per cent of the country’s labour force, making it Pakistan’s largest employer.
At present,