National Water Resources Council established

JAKARTA. President issued the Decree No 10/2017 on Water Resources Council, which stipulates the coordination on the planning and management of water resources.

The Water Resources Council is an institution of water resources management at the national level. As a non-structural institution under the President, the council will provide recommendations and advices to the President in formulating policies related to water resources management, as well as in terms of inter-stakeholders coordination in formulating and implementing water management policies.

The Water Resources Council will be chaired by Coordinating Minister of Economic Affairs, while Minister of Public Works and People’s Housing will be appointed as the Executive Chairman of the council.

Secretary General of the Ministry of Public Works and People’s Housing Anita Firmanti said, the Water Resources Council is expected to be able to optimize the water resources and to prevent overlapping among the stakeholders. In other words, the Water Resources Council may improve the coordination in the water resources management.

Chairman of Indonesian Packaged Drinking Water Companies Association (Aspadin) Rachmat Hidayat said, the Water Resources Council will become the government’s strategic partner in the utilizations of water resources in improving people’s welfare.

Actually, the establishment of National Water Resources Council was stipulated under the Law No 7/2004 on Water Resources. However, the Law was cancelled by the Constitutional Court in 2015.

After the Law was dismissed, the council became less effective, whereas the coordination in the implementation of water resources policies was urgently needed to prevent the overlapping at the operational level. (Muhammad Farid/Translator)