Biography
Muhammad Arfan has a PhD in Integrated Water Resources Management from US-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water, Jamshoro. Recently, he joined Centre for Climate and Environmental Research, Lahore, Pakistan. He has completed his master’s in Engineering Hydrology from the UET Lahore with a background in Agriculture Engineering from the University of Agriculture Faisalabad. Muhammad Arfan cultivates an interdisciplinary research experience while working with the World-Wide Fund for Nature Pakistan (WWF-Pakistan) and the International Institute of Social History (IISH). His research interest covers subjects related to water governance, integrated water resource management, common pool resource management, climate change adaptation, and quantitative & qualitative research designs. Mr. Arfan received a competitive research grant for an interdisciplinary research project from the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE). During this research project, he demonstrated strength in linking across disciplines. His technical work quantifying irrigation canal network flows and his engagement of stakeholders integrated physical science, engineering, and social science. He published in national and international journals and occasionally writes on climate and water issues for different newspapers. Recently, I summarized my research findings in a journal article, “Agenda Setting in Water and IWRM: Discourse Analysis of Water Policy Debate in Pakistan”, available in the press. The key finding of this research is, many developing countries—like Pakistan, adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as an isomorphic mimicry to appease international financing institutions and donors. He found out that Pakistan’s National Water Policy (NWP) adopted the IWRM framework as a reflection of state institutions to imbue water policy reform with international credibility.
Email: mapiish37@gmail.com