Due to substantial population growth putting increased pressure on the water resources, their quality has started to deteriorate. This is perceived as a serious issue since water is inseparably linked with the socio, economical and cultural aspects of livelihoods. Action was taken through an integrated lake conservation programme, aiming to improve water quality. The most important lesson learnt is that awareness raising, education and stakeholder participation are essential.
A case study on GWP ToolBox presents experiences from construction of reed bed waste water treatment plant in Vidrare village, central Bulgaria.
A National Consultation on the inclusion of a water specific Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) in the post 2015 Development Agenda of the United Nations was held on April 24th 2014, in Tunis. It was organized by the Global Water Partnership – Mediterranean (GWP-Med), under the auspices of the Water Resources Department of the Tunisian Ministry for Agriculture, and the Sustainable Development Department of the State Secretariat for Sustainable Development at the Ministry for Infrastructure, Land Planning and Sustainable Development.
On 29 October 2014 the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan organized an international conference “Development of Cooperation in the Aral Sea Basin to Mitigate Consequences of the Environmental Catastrophe” in Urgench, Uzbekistan.
“An integrated approach to managing and developing the world’s water resources is vital for not only driving world economies, ensuring human well-being and security from hunger, but can also serve as an essential building block for enhancing coherence on adaptation,” said Dr. Ursula Schaefer-Preuss, Chair of GWP at a side event at the Bonn climate change negotiations. “Water is the connecting link because climate impacts are largely felt through the medium of water,” she said.
On Tuesday 8 November, GWP Eastern Africa was attending a partners meeting on gendered REDD+ strategies, Norwegian royal embassy, Kampala, Uganda, along with the First Secretary of the royal embassy of Belgium in Uganda, the Development Counsellor of the royal embassy of Denmark in Uganda, the programme director for natural resources of Icelandic International Development Agency in Uganda, the First Secretary of the royal embassy of Norway in Uganda, a representative of the European Union Commission in Uganda, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the World Bank, Makerere University and International Union for Nature Conservation.
In Ukraine, reforms in the sector of water supply and sanitation have focused on centralising water supply and sanitation. Efforts have been made to decentralise water management, delegate to local authorities as well as increase supply in rural areas. This has been done through awareness campaigns, capacity building and innovative techniques of wastewater reuse. The key lesson learnt from this case is that IWRM principles need to be considered when planning for water infrastructure.
The meeting on the project "Green Growth Framework for water security in the Aral Sea Basin was held on 26-28 March 2013 in Seoul, Korea.
In order to contribute to the comprehensive and sustainable economic development in the region, GWP Central America has launched the Water, Climate and Development Programme, a programme that will promote water security as a strategic adaptation to climate variability and change.
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.