The farmers in the Volta river basin generally rely on rain-fed agriculture. However, insufficient or irregular rainfall frequently puts farmers at risk of losing their crops. Farmers must have access to a reliable water supply to sustain their livelihoods. In line with the problems highlighted, the Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) set out to find ways to strengthen the capacity of the famers, communities and other stake holders in the basin. As a lesson learnt, it is reasonable to expect stakeholders to adopt improved agricultural practices if such new practices are of their own benefit. Experiences show that stakeholders will only participate in innovation platform meetings when they see the value of doing so.
Water insecurity costs the global economy some US$ 500 billion annually, according to Global Water Partnership (GWP). That figure does not take into account environmental impacts so the total drag on the world economy could be 1% or more of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
"Delivering Solutions"
The 3rd workshop of the Capacity Building Programme “The Economics of Adaptation, Water Security and Climate Resilient Development” took place in the framework of the Water, Climate, Development Program for Africa (WACDEP), in Hammamet, Tunisia, on December 22-25, 2014. The Programme is composed of a series of five workshop trainings that are following the framework cycle developed under WACDEP for water security and climate resilience.
An interview with Haman Hajara from The African Indigenous Women Organisation in Morocco.
“I consider myself very fortunate to have spent the last 6 years as the Chair of the Technical Committee. The Committee should be seen as the stable backbone of GWP,” says Dr. Mohamed Ait-Kadi in a farewell interview.
Tanzania from 11-13 March kick-starts the Southern African Development Community (SADC) National Consultations to be held in all the 15 SADC member states. The consultations, to be held under the theme “From Vision to Action”, will provide a platform for (SADC) to engage and interact with the various stakeholders in mapping the strategic direction of the regional water resources management, SADC will be undertaking national consultations in the SADC Water Weeks within 15 of the SADC member countries. In each country, the platform will be provided through three main activities (media training, a youth forum and a national consultation). The national consultations are being facilitated by the SADC secretariat and implemented by GWP SA through the Country Water Partnerships (CWPs). Additionally, each consultation is being hosted by the ministry responsible for water in each country.
The 6th edition of the European River Restoration Conference, integrated with the Final event of the SEE River project, will be held in Vienna.
The WACDEP Coordinating Unit, under GWP SA has been working with stakeholders in and the WACDEP Program Managers in Zimbabwe and Mozambique in the preparation of the Reference Group Country Missions scheduled for March 2014. The Reference Group meetings were held from 23-25 March in Mozambique and 26-27 March in Zimbabwe among other things provided opportunities to exchange experiences, lessons, and challenges with the WACDEP team in Mozambique on WACDEP implementation and generate perspectives for enhancing progress in all components of the programme.
Lao Water Partnership with support from GWP Southeast Asia held a seminar on 15 June 2015 to support the Government of Lao PDR’s policy in relation to preparation and finalization of national socio-economic development plan 2016-2020, Strategy 2025 and Vision 2030, which related to national sustainable development and green economy.
Mr. Thoumma Saleumxay, Deputy Director General of Department of Water Resource, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, chaired the meeting and expressed on the important of Integrated Water Resources Management, sustainable development management in Lao PDR in in his opening remarks.
The United Nation Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) have developed an online tutorial to raise awareness about the benefits of using climate services for decision-making. GWP contributes to the tutorial through a video interview with GWP Senior Programme and Network Officer Frederik Pischke.