Uneven geographical distribution, coupled with pressures from rapid population growth, increased urbanization, industrialization and environmental degradation, is a big challenge to the sustainable development of Uganda’s freshwater resources. However, the policy and institutional framework has advanced over the past two decades in Uganda. The policy and legal reform process started with the introduction of the Water Act (1995) and the Uganda Water Action Plan (1995). Other key policies included the National Water Policy (1999) and the Local Government Act (1997, 2000). A key Lesson learnt is that political support matters in achieving success, as does the nature and logic of the political system. In Uganda, political prioritization of water and poverty was central to progress. The depth and longevity of sector reform relies on political support, which can ebb and flow.
Three more GWP Technical Background Papers are now also available in Spanish. GWP’s library of publications written by the Technical Committee is growing, and there are currently 18 background papers. Many of them have been translated into several languages.
The Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) in partnership with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC) is implementing a Water Climate and Development Programme (WACDEP) for the Caribbean.
The WACDEP supports Regional Training Workshops for African Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to advance their National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and the Regional Training Workshops on Economics of Adaptation, Water Security and Climate Resilience, Early Warning System of the African Union (AU) and the African Ministries Council on Water (AMCOW), the Global Water Partnership (GWP) in collaboration with UNDP-GEF, CDKN and CapNet will be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia:
Romania's water resources, being formed of surface waters – inland rivers, lakes and reservoirs, the Danube River – and groundwater are relatively poor and unequally distributed in time and space.
Despite an almost abundance of water, most water users in the South-western region of Burkina Faso regularly face water shortages due to an intensification of irrigated agriculture. Action was consequently taken to set up the Local Water Committee. The lesson learnt is that in the realm of the water sector, it is crucial for the state, local authorities, civil society and the private sector to collaborate to find new potential solutions.
In Carabobo State, the urban and agricultural expansions are the main causes of watershed problems resulting from degradation of forests, deforestation and inadequate solid waste management. Since 2009, action has been taken to combat these developments through participatory public policies which focus on environmental education and sustainable development. The key to the success of the project has been extensive capacity building in combination with concrete management tools.
With one of the lowest per capita freshwater resources in the world, China have been investing in and seeking new ideas and methods for improving both supply side and demand side management of water resources. This has included numerous experiments in “eco-compensation”. These experiences demonstrate that eco-compensation should be considered as a potential tool for Integrated River Basin Management to address financing shortfalls, identify management pitfalls, and convince key stakeholders to participate.
The “Status Report on the Application of Integrated Approaches to Water Resources Management” was launched by UN-Water on 19 June 2012 at Rio+20 with GWP Chair Dr Letitia A Obeng as one of the panelists. This Status Report, prepared by UNEP in collaboration with UNDP and GWP, is one of the official UN reports to the Rio+20 conference, and is based on a survey of countries carried out in 2011. GWP facilitated the completion of level 1 and 2 surveys through the Regional and Country Water Partnerships, and is very proud to have been a partner in this endeavour.