Three-day AWC First General Assembly-Summary Report
Reported by HE Mr. Watt Botkosal
Regional Chair, GWPSEA on 30 March 2016
The 1st Asia Water Council General Assembly was hosted and Co-organized by Ministry of Public Works and Housing and AWC Secretariat on 24-26 March 2016, Nusa Dua Beach Hotel and Spa, Bali, Indonesia. The AWC was established by 15 Founders of Countries and international Agencies since the 7th World Water Week in Korea. The AWC aims to raise global awareness of Asia’s water problems and promote the sustainable development of Asia by resolving regional water issues. The General Assembly aimed to discuss the AWC Constitution and the operation plan for the AWC and to share the commitments from Founders. The General Assembly was attended by about 200 participants from about 50 organizations including Minister, Vice-Minister, Directors General, Directors, Chairpersons, AWC Secretariat, national and international organizations from Asia, Europe, Africa, and Australia such as UNESCO-IHP, FAO, and ADB (Asian Development Bank), KOICA, Representative of GWP SEA, Country Water Partnership of Indonesia, national agencies etc.
India Water Week-2016 was held from 4 to 8 April 2016 with the theme of ‘Water for All: Striving together’. While the Inaugural and Plenary ceremony of the event took place at Vigyan Bhavan; the rest such as seminars, panel discussions, side events, exhibitions, brainstorming sessions, were held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
Lebanon and Jordan are exploring the possibility of joining the UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention). To assist the two countries in this process, UNECE and the Global Water Partnership - Mediterranean (GWP-Med), with financial support provided by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), have organised national workshops to increase awareness and understanding of relevant stakeholders of the different legal and institutional frameworks for cooperation on shared waters resources, the specificities of the UNECE Water Convention, in comparison to the UN Watercourses Convention, as well as the complementarity of the two agreements.
The Global Water Partnership (GWP) staff in Zimbabwe attended World Water Day commemorations organised by Mukuvisi Woodlands Nature Reserve and Environment Centre incorporating the Eco Schools Environment Education Programme. The event was funded by the 3rd European Union Water Facility Programme in Zimbabwe and was held at Darwendale/Manyame Dam on the 25th of March 2015. Apart from GWP, the event attracted 449 children and 74 teachers from 27 schools and 13 other organisations which included the European Union (EU),Environment Africa (EA), Wildlife Conservation, Practical Action, Upper Manyame Sub Catchment Council (UMSCC) and National Parks.
The World Water Day was commemorated in Uganda on Monday, 23 March 2015. The celebration ceremony took place at the new premises of the Directorate of Water Resources Management in Entebbe under the theme of Water and Sustainable Development.
The Young Water Leaders’ Summit (YWLS) is one of the key programmes of Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) scheduled to be held from 10 to 12 July 2016 at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.