From 2 to 14 November 2025 the KOICA Pakistan Office carried out a preliminary survey for the upcoming PCRWR project, a USD 12 million initiative slated for 2026–2032 to strengthen research infrastructure and integrated water resources management across Pakistan.
The survey team, composed of KOICA Pakistan Office staff and Korean technical experts, assessed local conditions in Karachi and Islamabad and held extensive consultations with provincial and federal stakeholders. In Karachi discussions with the Public Health Engineering Department Sindh, the National Institute of Oceanography, the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency and the Karachi Water & Sewerage Corporation highlighted priority challenges in water quality and resource management and identified avenues for collaboration with the provincial government.
In Islamabad meetings with the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources, the Capital Development Authority and UNOPS focused on concrete cooperation areas for the PCRWR project, including upgrading water quality laboratories, supplying water resource management equipment, and developing and installing groundwater monitoring systems to bolster integrated management capacities.
The delegation conducted field visits to groundwater and surface water sites to refine project objectives and evaluate the sustainability of operations after project completion. Officials from PCRWR and CDA expressed strong expectations that the project will significantly improve the efficiency of water resource management in both Islamabad and Karachi.
Based on the preliminary findings, KOICA Pakistan Office will prepare a comprehensive master plan and pursue policy and institutional improvements for water resource management. The plan aims to establish a sustainable domestic water monitoring system that strengthens national water management capacity and improves water quality for communities across Pakistan as part of the broader PCRWR project.
