…in collaboration with WWF and JICA
AS evidence of government’s commitment to the effective management and proper decision making, regarding the country’s water resources, the National Water Resources System (NWIS) was officially launched yesterday by the Minister of Agriculture, Robert Persaud.
NWIS was launched in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Hydrometeorological Office, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) It is an internet based, user-friendly programme that aims to coordinate data dissemination and data sharing between data collectors and decision-makers, centralize and standardize data collection across the multiple agencies and sectors involved in water management, and provide easier access to timely information to assess a country’s water resources for decision-making.
At the launching ceremony at the Ministry of Agriculture, Minister Persaud took the opportunity to expound on the importance of such a project, made possible through collaboration with WWF and JICA, who both contributed to the hardware and software components of the project.
He said, “Our government is committed to ensuring that the necessary tools are provided that would allow us to have wise and informed decisions that we take in regard to water use and management, especially looking at its impact on the livelihoods of all Guyanese, both in the short and long term.”
Persaud acknowledged that our economy is linked to water availability and supply in all industries; as a result, these competing demands mean that we have to have a clear understanding of all of our water needs.
“Central to this is the creation of an effective and user-friendly water information system… in Guyana water has been traditionally used in a very compartmentalised manner by looking at various sectors.”
This situation that existed before did not allow for the effective and integrated approach to the management and the development of this precious resource, in fact, this has contributed to inappropriate actions, individually and collectively, to water resource management in the country, he added.
Beyond meeting basic needs, water is vital to sustaining development, it is a major source of energy in many parts of the world, and very soon it will be in Guyana, with the introduction of Hydropower.
It is an integral part of the transportation system and the basis for food production, as agriculture is by far the primary user of water.
Minister Persaud emphasised that in a country such as ours, there is no question that water-use in agriculture must be managed and used wisely.
As to the role that the NWIS will play in promoting improved water resource management, he noted that the system will provide Guyana with a state- of- the- art decision- making tool that will allow improvement in integrated water resource management as it consolidates all information relating to the country’s water resources.
It is also in keeping with government’s promise as it fits into the Low Carbon Development Strategy LCDS, and concretises one of the primary objectives of the recently tabled Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. In addition, it signals the government’s commitment to United Nations Millennium Development Goals MDGS and the UN Decade of Action, themed ‘Water is Life 2005-2015.’
“The object is to revolutionise our approach to management in Guyana… we and our partners have made significant investments in this project, both in terms of human and capital resources, and it is expected that the results will not only further enhance this, but will be utilised by all stakeholders,” Minister Persaud stressed.
Representatives from WWF, Dr.Patrick Williams, and JICA, Mr. Osamu Nakazawa, were present at the launching and delivered brief remarks on their contribution and on the importance of NWIS.
Initially the System will be housed at the Hydrometeorological Office and will only be available to key stakeholders, including, Guyana Water Incorporated , National Drainage and Irrigation Authority , Guyana Sugar Corporation GUYSUCO , Ministry of Agriculture , among others.
According to Minister Persaud, this system will be made available at a later date to interested parties, for a fee, to ensure the sustainability of the programme.