In Benin, four years of lobbying and workshops culminated in the adoption by the Government, in July 2009, of a new water policy based on the IWRM approach. GWP Benin led efforts, working with parliamentarians, ministries, civil society, local communities and water user organisations, and establishing a task force. GWP Benin also arranged for consultants to review the first draft of the policy and organised a national workshop to validate the final draft.
Caribbean Ministers of Water will meet to discuss water security at the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean’s (GWP-C) and the Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association’s (CWWA), 6th High Level Session (HLS) in Grenada on October 3rd and 4th, 2010.
Benin in West Africa belongs to the group of Least Developed Countries (LDC) with a low per capita GDP. Its economy is predominantly dependant on subsistence farming (extensive cotton production) and regional trade. The country is drained by a dense hydrographical network made up of seasonal flow rivers and less than 3% of its renewable water resources are currently used.
GWP-C in its continued efforts to support Caribbean countries in the sustainable management of their water resources has created a Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) model that can be adopted by water-scarce communities.
GWP China hosted the GWP Steering Committee Meeting which was held from May 18 to 21, 2010 in Beijing.