The Upper Mur River is considered as one of the most ecologically valuable rivers of Austria due to the natural reproduction for the Danube salmon. The systematic regulation of the river began at the end of the 19th century, distributaries were cut off and large areas were drained in order to intensify agricultural land use. Restoration measures started in 1997 in the area of the Upper Mur and the “Grenzmur”. Various projects facilitated the renaturation of more than 22 km both in the upper course and the Slovenian border section of the river. A policy issue highlighted by the project is the importance to reconcile key needs for nature conservation with demands for renewable energy generation from small hydro power plants.
The WACDEP has launched its Young Professional Development Initiative. GWP is calling on Young Professionals in fields related to water management and development, who wish to enhance their professional capacity to express their interest in promoting youth and water engagement through the WACDEP country and regional programmes. Nine (9) Youth Professionals will serve on an internship basis in each of the eight WACDEP countries and in the WACDEP Coordination Unit (CU) in Pretoria, for a period of between six to twelve months.
The Veluwe Randmeren lakes in the Netherlands were negatively affected by the discharge of phosphates and nitrates from agriculture and household use. Furthermore, increase in population pressure posed further challenges. To address these issues, a group consisting of national and local authorities undertook a project, which gradually increased the water quality. The case study demonstrates the importance of allowing integration among stakeholder groups.
A delegation from GWP is travelling to Sendai, Japan, to take part in the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR) on 14-18 March. GWP will co-lead a working session on “Integrated Water Resources Management” together with WMO and UNESCO.
The Water, Climate and Development Programme in South Asia was developed to support countries and regional organisations to integrate water security and climate resilience programming at transboundary, national and local levels through policy dialogues and participatory approaches.
An Expert Task Force of the joint GWP/OECD project “Global Dialogue on Water Security and Sustainable Growth” has presented provisional results of research into the economics of water security. Although still a work in progress, some striking patterns stand out, and the experts believe this could be a game changer in the quest for a dedicated water goal in the post-2015 development agenda, as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are to be decided upon.
The one-day national consultation took place at the Reiz Continental Hotel, Central Business District Area in Abuja on 3rd April, 2014. The meeting was organized by the Global Water Partnership-Nigeria (GWP-N). The Consultations captured a broad range of priority issues related to water in the post-2015 development agenda from the Nigerian perspective.
The European rivers Mura, Drava and Danube form a 700 km long “green belt” connecting more than 800,000 ha of highly valuable natural and cultural landscapes in five countries (Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary and Serbia). This area is a symbol of unity among the countries and is planned to become a protected Transboundary UNESCO Biosphere Reserve “Mura-Drava-Danube” (TBR MDD).
Professor John B.R. Agard held the GWP Annual Lecture at the Consulting Partners Meeting 2014 in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, on 28 June. The topic was “Climate Change and Water”.