Dr Abubakr Muhammad's Talk: A Systems Perspective on Establishing Hydrometeorological Monitoring Networks in Complex River Basins

Last week, Dr Abubakr Muhammad, STEMS Visiting Fellow at Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and an Associate Professor at Lahore University of Management Sciences, shared his perspective on and experience with applying systems thinking approach to establishing monitoring networks in complex river basins, such as the Indis River Basin. The talk was the first OWN event of the academic year welcoming a diverse audience and sparking insightful discussions. Before the talk, Dr Saskia Nowicki announced the launch of the Oxford Systems Thinking Hub aimed at bringing together systems thinkers across the University of Oxford and the wider Oxford community.

Dr Abubakr Muhammad touched upon various challenges for Pakistan's water sector, concerning water resources development, management and governance, as well as possible supply-driven and demand-driven solutions highlighting the two key questions. A technology question explored what role could new digital technologies play in addressing some of the mentioned challenges. Dr Muhammad shared a plethora of initiatives he was involved in at the Centre for Water Informatics and Technology building hydrometeorological sensor networks. A policy question focused on how sure policymakers were about the response to new interventions by water users.

Talking about supply- and demand-driven approaches, Dr Abubakr Muhammad mentioned the need for balancing investments between both, such as, for instance, smart irrigation and hydropower - which could help significantly reduce the economic and environmental costs of multi-sector water conservation in the Indus Basin. He also brought up the irrigation efficiency paradox arguing that one-sided solutions without a systems thinking approach could reverse the desired outcome.

In the concluding remarks, Dr Muhammad stressed that technological solutions provided opportunities for financing as adaptation or mitigation strategies but they should look towards the stewardship and welfare of marginalised populations, such as small farmers. According to the speaker, systems thinking provided an opportunity to connect sectors and motivate cooperation across the region.