Jakarta, Indonesia, 16 May 2016 – A panel of experts today delivered a seminar titled “Water Crisis or Water Management Crisis: Integrated Water Resource Management” during the 41st Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).

“Water is essential for humans,” said Ir. Murdjadi Director of Water Resources in Indonesia’s Ministry of Public Works & Housing. “There is no economy, no environment, no life without water. So how we do manage this resource?”

He noted that while Indonesia has plentiful water resources, several districts, including Nusa Tenggara, Kalimantan and some areas in east part of the country, are facing a water crisis.

“Distribution is the main problem,” he said. “However, the government has a target of building new infrastructure so people can access clean water.”

Dr. Richard Soppe, Senior Scientist – Marginal Water Management at the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) agreed that reliable infrastructure along with strong monitoring systems are essential components water management.

Dr. Phillia Restiani, Program Manager, UNDP-Stockholm International Water Institute, said the UNDP Global Water Strategy takes a three-pronged approach to fight poverty and inequity: transform the economy to become inclusive and sustainable; enable democracy to deliver development dividends; and manage risk to become resilient. UNDP has collaborated with Stockholm International Water Institute to built sustainability since 2005.
Dr. Sami A. Faruqi, Division Manager, Water Resource and Environment at IsDB said the Bank has invested almost USD 6 billion in the water sector in the past 10 years.

# # #
About the Islamic Development Bank:
IsDB is a multilateral development bank with headquarters in Jeddah, KSA. It consists of 57 member countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. The purpose of the bank is to foster the economic development and social progress in its member countries, and Muslim communities in non-member countries. The Bank has regional offices in Kuala Lampur (Malaysia), Rabat (Morocco), Almaty (Kazakhstan), Dakar (Senegal), and several gateway offices and field representatives in different parts of the
world.
For more information:
isdb.org