Towards sustainable transboundary water cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan: A case study of Kabul River

Abstract

Afghanistan has been trying hard to gradually develop its largely underused water resources. The transboundary Kabul River basin (KRB) between Afghanistan and Pakistan contributes almost one quarter to the water resources generated nationwide. Currently, there is no cooperation mechanism pertaining to KRB, despite growing demand for irrigation and hydropower particularly on the Afghan side. This paper presents a state-of-the-art review on transboundary water issues between Afghanistan and Pakistan based on geographic, hydrographic, hydrologic, historic, institutional, and political aspects. The challenges and opportunities are carefully examined, and a path forward is presented. A persistent lack of trust between upstream Afghanistan and downstream Pakistan has hindered meaningful dialogue for cooperation. Both neighbors have high stakes in cooperation given that Afghanistan’s water resources are almost 90% transboundary and Pakistan has high dependency for water resources. This study presents a cooperation framework emphasizing benefits-sharing as a principle going beyond water needs and rights.