The Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) has successfully completed a capacity-building training program under the project “Enhancing Water Quality System to Achieve SDG 6 in Pakistan.” The program, conducted at the National Capacity Building Institute (NCBI) in Islamabad, aimed to strengthen the skills of professionals working in water supply services, such as the Public Health Engineering Department, in monitoring and improving water quality.
The one-year training program focused on enhancing participants’ ability to test and treat water effectively, ensuring accurate data collection for reporting progress on Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6), which focuses on clean water and sanitation for all.
The training was designed to be highly practical, with 30% dedicated to lectures and 70% to hands-on practice. Participants conducted water quality tests in PCRWR’s National Water Quality Laboratory (NWQL), using internationally recognized procedures. A total of 116 professionals from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Health Engineering Department, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) took part in the program, which ran from August 15, 2023, to June 24, 2024.
The participants were divided into two groups:
• Group 1: 38 Research Officers and Junior Research Officers, trained in 3 batches.
• Group 2: 78 Laboratory Assistants, trained in 5 batches.
The course included two main sessions:
1. Basic Training: 8 batches of 15-20 participants underwent 21 weeks of basic training.
2. Refresher Courses: The same participants completed an additional 8 weeks of refresher training in 8 batches.
With support from KOICA, this comprehensive 29-week program has greatly improved the capacity of provincial water supply agencies. Their professionals are now better equipped to monitor water quality and report on SDG 6 Indicator 6.1.1, ensuring reliable data is provided for Pakistan’s annual SDG-6 reporting.