Dr. Danka Thalmeinerova, GWP’s Knowledge Management Officer, wrote this blog after attending a meeting on September 3-4, 2012, hosted by Finland, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention).
“Media is our strategic partner—without it, we expect low levels of awareness, and slow change in water unfriendly practices and policies-”
The Country Water Partnership of Benin (Benin CWP) marked the celebration of the 21th edition of the World Water Day (WWD) on March 22, 2013 by mobilizing stakeholders of the departments of Mono and Couffo around the international theme of "Water cooperation ".A radio debate to inform people about the topic was moderated by stakeholders involved in the commune of Lokossa in the presence of the Training and Communication Officer of CWP-Benin.
Two-thirds of the Central American population lives in urban areas which is why GWP Central America, with the support of CapNet and LAWETNet, organized a regional workshop on Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) at the Pan-American School for Agriculture (Zamorano) in Honduras from 29 October to 1 November 2012. Participants included representatives of the six countries of the region from municipalities of major cities, water and sanitation agencies, and universities.
The Yangtze River Basin has been severely affected by climate change. To address this, the Yangtze River Basin Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Report has been drafted to evaluate the impact on representative ecosystems and water resources, and pinpoint adaptation strategies. The experience has demonstrated that good adaptation measures should consider not only climate itself, but also other factors, such as economy, technology, as well as social and cultural norms.
Water and its management is becoming not just a local but a global priority. The UN Rio+20 Declaration emphasises the need to establish a green economy as the means to achieving sustainable development while protecting and improving the world’s natural resources. Water is increasingly seen as a central plank of the green economy. It is embedded in all aspects of development – food security, health, and poverty reduction – and in sustaining economic growth in agriculture, industry, and energy generation.
Ukraine, situated by the Black Sea is bordering Belarus, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia and Slovakia. It is the second largest country in Europe, placed in the crossroads between Europe and Asia, giving it a very strategic position. The climate is temperate continental (although Mediterranean in the southern Crimean coast). The precipitation is disproportionally distributed being the highest in west and north; summers are warm across the country. Most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains and plateaus. In terms of natural resources, it is among other materials rich in iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas and oil.
Uganda is a landlocked country and bordered on the west by the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the north by the Sudan, on the east by Kenya, and on the south by Tanzania and Rwanda.
Ethiopia is a landlocked state, bordered by Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. Until quite recently, Ethiopia was not a landlocked state but in 1993, the entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the de jure independence of Eritrea. On a different geographical note, the Blue Nile, the chief headstream of the Nile by water volume, rises in T'ana Hayk (Lake Tana) in northwest Ethiopia. The climate is tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation. In terms of natural resources, Ethiopia is not rich, although it has small reserves of gold, platinum, copper and natural gas.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and Global Water Partnership (GWP) have launched a joint Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) on March 13, 2013, to improve monitoring and prevention of one of the world’s greatest natural hazards.