Ceremony of World Water Day 2024 was held at Myanmar International Convention Centre II in Nay Pyi Taw on 22 March. Chairman of National Water Resources Committee, Chairman of State Administration Council Prime Minister Senior General Min Aung Hlaing delivered a speech at the ceremony.
- According to a WHO study in 2022, 1.4 million people die every year of diseases caused by unclean water and sewage.
- Myanmar is applying effective multiple management means and adopting water policies and laws in trying to increase water supply for agriculture, extend hydropower generation, increase household use and industrial use of water supply.
- Water management is an important step towards responding to the challenges of climate change, food sufficiency, poverty alleviation, protecting biodiversity, preventing water pollution, and solving water crisis. It can reach many goals.
- Myanmar has formed the National Water Resources Committee and is preparing to enact the National Water Law that governs all the water sectors to systematically manage water related sectors.
- There are 246 dams, 144 diversion dams, 72 lakes, 199 sluice gates and 219 river water pumping stations in the entire country and water is supplied to agricultural farms and households while electricity is generated in some dams.
- There are a total of 390 river water supply projects that pump water from four major rivers such as the Ayeyawady, the Chindwin, Thanlwin and Sittaung and other rivers and creeks for nearly 750,000 acres of farmland.
- Water is supplied from 14,989 underground water pumping stations to nearly 930,000 acres of farmland.
- As the agriculture sector uses the largest supply of freshwater in the country and 89 percent of freshwater is used for the sector, utilizing water resources beneficially and managing them for their sustainability has become an important sector for the country.
- Investing in scientific research on water can contribute to further understanding of the nature of water and tasks can be carried out more precisely in finding out ways and means for utilizing water resources and prevention of disasters related to water and decision-making in water governance.
Then, the Senior General and Vice Chairman of the National Level Water Resources Committee Deputy Prime Minister Union Minister for Transport General Mya Tun Oo presented prizes to winners in amateur level article-writing competition commemorating World Water Day 2024.
Afterward, the Senior General and attendees enjoyed the documentary video commemorating the World Water Day 2024 and "Loving Kindness of a Drop of Water" play presented by the Directorate of Water Resources and Improvement of River System and the Senior General presented an honorary flower basket and cash rewards to the performers.
Afterward, the Senior General and attendees viewed the individual exhibition booths commemorating the World Water Day 2024 enthusiastically and responsible officials conducted them around the booths.
Present were SAC Joint Secretary Lt-Gen Ye Win Oo, SAC members, union ministers, the Nay Pyi Taw Council chair, senior military officers from the Office of the Commander-in- Chief, the Nay Pyi Taw Command commander, deputy ministers, permanent secretaries, directors general, principals and rectors colleges and universities, guests and officials. Region/state chief ministers attended the meeting through video conferencing, it is reported.
Source: MWD (23-3-2024)
- Myanmar is applying effective multiple management means and adopting water policies and laws in trying to increase water supply for agriculture, extend hydropower generation, increase household use and industrial use of water supply.
- There are 246 dams, 144 diversion dams, 72 lakes, 199 sluice gates and 219 river water pumping stations in the entire country and water is supplied to agricultural farms and households while electricity is generated in some dams.
- As the agriculture sector uses the largest supply of freshwater in the country and 89 percent of freshwater is used for the sector, utilizing water resources beneficially and managing them for their sustainability has become an important sector for the country.