The Global Water Partnership South Asia (GWP SAS) Regional Council announced the appointment of Dr Nilufa Islam as the GWP SAS Chairperson in effective of 16 July 2020.
With hand-washing as one of the top recommendations to hinder the spread of COVID-19, the lack of access to clean water and sanitation in many parts of the world is being reported on extensively in media. Water management, and in particular the impact of climate change on water resources, has come to the fore. In recent years, GWP has collaborated with UNICEF on this issue, developing a Strategic Framework for Climate Resilience and WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), including a Help Desk that is being developed to support users of the Framework.
A 3-part webinar series took place in February and March to highlight and clarify linkages between water and climate in national climate action plans, such as the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), and various investment mechanisms. “For me, the stories from countries were the best part. I think they speak to all of us and tell us what it's really like to change theory into implementation on the ground,” said Dani Gaillard-Picher, GWP Global Coordinator for Water and Climate Processes, in her summary of the series.
In June 2020, the Ministry of Water Resources sent an expert team to Liangshan Prefecture, Sichuan Province, to explore water development regarding science and technology in mountain areas. Prof Yunzhong Jiang, regional coordinator of GWP China, was one of the professional advisors.
A two-day workshop on the Climate-Land-Energy-Water (CLEWs) modelling framework and its use in the Nexus Assessment of the Drina River Basin took place on 8,9 July 2021. The purpose of the workshop was to familiarise participants with the Climate, Land, Energy and Water systems (CLEWs) nexus methodology, used to quantitatively assess the energy-water interlinkages within the Nexus assessment of the Drina River Basin. By providing an overview of general concepts, tools used and hands-on experience on model building, the workshop opened the box of the modelling analysis to the audience and laid the ground for local uptake of the model infrastructure.
GWP-WA chair, Prof. Amadou Hama MAIGA and Executive Secretary, M. Armand HOUANYE made a working visit in Niamey, Niger from 9 to 13 November 2020 to inform project stakeholders, exchange with partners on the priorities and next steps in the implementation of project, discuss potential synergies to be developed in the implementation of the project and other ongoing and future initiatives in Niger and the sub-region and develop a roadmap for the strengthening of the governance of the Country Water Partnership of Niger.
