In the night of Wednesday 16 to Thursday 17 May, a drama occurred in Lake Toho in Kpinou, in the commune of Athiémé /Departement of Mono, South-West Benin. Lifeless fish floated to the surface of the lake. The authorities of the sectoral ministries, in turn, went down to the site to observe the damage. Thousands of dead fish lay on the ground of a fish farm developer in Kpinnou.
GWP’s “Follow-the-Sun” Network Meeting concluded, after 29 hours, on Friday 28 September. The meeting, which was held in 15 consecutive multi-point video conference sessions over two days, engaged over 400 Partners across the world, in nearly 50 countries. The main aim was to seek insight for GWP’s Strategy development, in addition to statutory tasks. “We have a powerful story”, said GWP Executive Secretary Monika Weber-Fahr in her concluding remarks.
The Youth Scientific Conference on Water was held on 31 October 2018 at the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Sofia, Bulgaria.
GWP promotes youth inclusion in water resources management. One of those ways is through a robust internship programme. Civil Engineer Axel Martinez, 26, from Nicaragua, spent five months with GWP Central America as a Young Professional Development Initiative Intern under GWP’s Water, Climate and Development Programme (WACDEP). He says the experience has helped him to grow professionally.
The crucial role of water ecosystems -and especially coastal wetlands- in Middle East & North Africa (MENA) and the policy options on how to best protect and valorize them through a Nexus approach were discussed at a session co-convened by the Global Water Partnership – Mediterranean (GWP-Med) and Wetlands International during the recent World Water Week in Stockholm (27-31 August 2018).
Youth representatives from Ghar El Melh, some 60 Km north of Tunis gathered on 24 June 2019, to identify options for green employment in their home area, also interacting with local authorities responsible for promoting employability (The Employment Office of Utique). During the Workshop on“First Green Jobs”) participants enhanced their understanding on green economy and its role in sustainably managing natural resources while providing opportunities for jobs and entrepreneurship.
The International Day of Women and Girls in Science is celebrated on 11 February - it is implemented by UNESCO and UN-Women, in collaboration with institutions and civil society partners. The day aligns with GWP's Gender Strategy, which addresses diversity and inclusion, social equity, and women's role in the integrated and sustainable management of water resources.
The Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWPSA) has been supporting the European Union (EU) -supported Southern African Development Community (SADC) 'Water-Energy-Food ' (WEF) nexus project since July 2017. The two expected results of the project are to establish a SADC Regional WEF Nexus Framework; and develop a prioritised list of Nexus Investment Projects. To realise the result areas, the SADC member states workshop on WEF Nexus was held on the 25th March 2018, bringing together over 150 delegates from all SADC countries.
