A three-day Meghna Knowledge Forum (MKF) concluded recently which laid the foundation of a multi-stakeholder knowledge exchange platform for the Meghna river basin.
The Meghna River Basin is significant to both Bangladesh and India as it supports the livelihoods of almost 50 million people. Therefore the forum was held with an objective to facilitate partnerships among different stakeholders and sectors to address knowledge gaps in the implementation of an Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM).
Around 100 persons participated from across the Meghna basin including high-level dignitaries, Dr. Rajdeep Roy, Member of Parliament, India (Silchar, Assam), Saber Hossain Chowdhury, MP Bangladesh, and M. A. Mannan, Minister of Planning, Bangladesh.
The forum included 10 different thematic sessions and more than 40 speakers from diverse sectors, including from the Garo and Kashi indigenous communities. The speakers shared their perspectives on the wide range of issues linked to culture, water governance, climate change, and inland navigation.
The forum also highlighted the need to strengthen the governance of the basin and make it more inclusive and responsive to the needs and aspirations of the indigenous community. It also showcased examples of community-led nature-based solutions supported by governments that need to be documented, up scaled, and replicated across the basin.
Highlighting the significance of the Barak-Meghna river system, Dr. Roy said, “Barak river is rich in biodiversity and more than 100 species of fish, including the Ganges Dolphin, listed as endangered species have been recorded from Barak river in India.”
“There are more than 276 shared river basins across the world, Meghna basin is one of them,” said Chowdhury.
