Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO) with support from Jehan Pakstan conducts Media Forum in Lahore, 15th March 2018, with stakeholders from academia, media, politics, government and the civil society.
Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO) with support from Jehan Pakstan conducts Media Forum in Lahore, 15th March 2018, with stakeholders from academia, media, politics, government and the civil society.
Eight media forums would be held on WASH with the relevant stakeholders, as part of ‘Engaging the legislators for universal access to WASH Rights’ initiative by SPO. These forums would further enable the WASH agenda to seep into the Academia, media, politics and the government. Forum Panel Members included; Dr. Muhammad Asif Bajwa, Advocate – PMLN and Member Public Accounts Committee, Dr. Nausheen Hamid – MPA PTI and Member Health and Gender Mainstreaming Committees, Ehsan Riaz Fatyana – an Independent Candidate and Prof. Dr. Sajid Rashid Ahmad – Department of Prof. Dr. Sajid Rashid Ahmad Punjab University and Shahnawaz Khan – Regional Coordinator SPO Lahore.
The Forum highlighted indispensable need for political parties to include Water and Sanitation in political mandate and vigorous efforts for Water and Sanitation at policy-level, as it has become one of the biggest global challenges of today’s world. Hazards of toxic waste from industries poisoning water in rivers of Punjab further exacerbates WASH condition in Pakistan. Some efforts of present government for access to clean water in Punjab were also discussed at forum. Forum concluded with the note that the magnitude and intensity water and sanitation problem has risen to over last few years, demands a state of emergency on mitigating WASH associated risks in Pakistan and to make water, sanitation and hygiene a fundamental human right of every Pakistani citizen.
