On 6 Oct 2023, Dr. Divas B. Basnyat, Lead, Water and Climate Program, NDRI served as a panelist in a policy workshop on Nepal’s Water Sector Investment Priorities, organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The main objective of this workshop was to engage relevant stakeholders in a consultative process to identify and agree on investment priorities for tackling sectoral challenges to strengthen linkages between the water and agriculture sectors. Dr. Basnyat spoke about the importance of the right type of infrastructure to manage the uncertainties of the current climate and future climate change in Nepal.

Infrastructure “deficit” is a challenge and critical gap in coping with the high seasonal variations and uncertainties of the hydrological regime of Nepal. He also stressed that the hydrological and socio-economic “context” of Nepal is quite different from the developed world. Hence, Nepal needs to also focus on “hard water solutions” rather than just relying on “soft-water strategies” that experts from the developed countries often recommend. Dr. Sagar Prasai and Mr. Saumitra Neupane  presented background papers on the topic.

The event was attended by Mr. Madhav P. Belbase, Hon. Member of the Civil Services Commission; Dr. Govinda Prasad Sharma, Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development; Mr. Ken Shimizu, FAO Country Representative; and other highranking government officials, experts and key stakeholders.

Picture credit: FAO, Nepal