Water for growth and development in the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna basins: an economic perspective

ABSTRACT

The Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna (GBM) river system flows through five countries – Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, and Nepal – characterized by large population, limited land resources, and frequent floods and natural hazards. Although the GBM region is well endowed with water sources, this is one of the poorest regions in the world. Its economy and human and environmental health depend on water, and water is thus at the heart of sustainable development, economic growth, and poverty reduction. This paper examines the opportunities for, and potential socio-economic benefits of, water resource management in the GBM region in the face of changing climate. It argues that water can be an entry point for addressing challenges common to the region, particularly through multi-purpose river projects that store monsoon water, mitigate the effects of floods and droughts, augment dry season river flows, expand irrigation and navigation facilities, generate hydropower, and enhance energy and environmental security. The paper emphasizes the importance of effective regional cooperation in water management to achieve these benefits. Upstream–downstream interdependencies necessitate development of a shared river system in an integrated and collaborative manner.

Keywords:

• Water resource management
• regional cooperation
• Ganges
• Brahmaputra
• and Meghna basins
• upstream–downstream linkages

Acknowledgements

The author would like to offer his sincere thanks to the two anonymous reviewers and editor for their very helpful comments and suggestions. The author also benefitted from discussions and comments from Dr David Molden, Dr Eklabya Sharma, Dr Arun B. Shrestha, Dr Ramesh A. Vaidya, and Dr SM Wahid of ICIMOD. Dr Nilhari Neupane helped in collecting some data. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect that of ICIMOD or any other organization mentioned above.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Funding

This study was part of Koshi Basin Programme of ICIMOD funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) of Australia and Himalayan Adaptation, Water and Resilience (HI-AWARE) programme of ICIMOD funded by the UK's Department for International Development (DFID) and Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC). The author also gratefully acknowledges the support of core donors of ICIMOD: the Governments of Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.