IAEA aims to assist sustainable water management
A Technical Cooperation (TC) Expert Mission organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been commenced in Bangladesh.
The mission starts on 19 April and will continue up till 23 April 2026. The main objective of the mission is to support the Implementation of the IAEA’s Water Availability Enhancement (IWAVE) initiative and to assists Bangladesh regarding the sustainable water resource management using Isotope Hydrology Techniques.
As a part of the mission, the experts visited the laboratory facilities of the Isotope Hydrology Division (IHD) at the Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology, Ganakbari, Savar.
During the visit, they found a shortage of both analytical facilities and manpower at the IHD laboratory.
They suggested setting up analytical facilities for analyzing water for tritium and carbon-14 age dating through an IAEA Technical Cooperation (TC) project or a Government of Bangladesh (GoB)-funded project. They hoped that the tritium analytical facility would help to monitor the tritium level of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP)’s cooling water, which is important for environmental safety.
Accordingly, the Isotope Hydrology Division, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) organized a day- long National Stakeholder Workshop and Technical Consultation Meeting on 20 April 2026 at its Headquarters in Dhaka.
The workshop aimed to enhance understanding of isotope-based methodologies for assessing water resources, promote the integration of scientific data into national water management frameworks, strengthen collaboration among relevant institutions and stakeholders, and identify priority areas for capacity building and future cooperation.
Dr. Melanie Vital, Technical Officer at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria, and Prof. Frederic Huneau of Université de Corse Pascal Paoli, France, attended the workshop as guest speakers.
Scientists of various institutes of BAEC were also present in the workshop. Representatives from the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Water Resources, JICA, Bangladesh Water Development (BWDB), Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), Geological Survey of Bangladesh (GSB), BUET, DU, Jahangirnagar University, IWM, CEGIS and DWASA were present in the workshop. Dr. Ratan Kumar Majumder, Chief Geologist of the Isotope Hydrology Division at BAEC, delivered the welcome speech, highlighting the importance of isotope hydrology in ensuring the proper management and sustainable development of Bangladesh’s water resources.
Md. Anwar Hossain, Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology, the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh attended the event as Chief Guest. Dr. M Moinul Islam, Chairman of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission presided over the workshop. Finally, Dr. Md. Asad Sharif, Director International Affairs Division thanks all participated in the workshop.
