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Development of a roadmap to implement recommendations of the national consultation on water and food security in support of agriculture development programs in Africa

The Country Water Partnership of Benin, with financial support from the German technical cooperation agency GIZ through the ProSEHA Programme, organized from 24 to 25 March 2016 a restitution workshop of the results and the development process for the implementation of the roadmap recommendations of the national consultation on water and food security in support of agriculture development programs in Africa (PDDA).

The National Council for Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Integrated Coastal Zone Management, headed by H.E. the President of Montenegro, Mr. Filip Vujanović, convened in Podgorica, on 15 June 2016, to review the draft National Strategy for Sustainable Development until 2030 that will be presented in July at the Political Forum's session of the UN Economic and Social Council. The National Council also discussed issues and actions related to the coastal zone management and the protection and management of water resources in Montenegro.

From the 4^th to the 8^th of December 2015, GWP-CAf had offered a course on the module entitled “Water and Socio-Economic Development” (LPEE 233) to 2^nd year students of the School of Wood, Water and Natural Resources of the Faculty of Agronomy and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Dschang , the Ebolowa Branch in South Region of Cameroon.

This activity is related to GWP-CAf strategic goal n°2: “Generate and communicate knowledge” developed in the implementation of the collaborative partnership established since 2007 between Global Water Partnership Central Africa with the University of Dschang, and thus oriented towards providing technical support in the delivery of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) related courses.

Within 5 days, 65 out of 77 students attended the lectures which were organized and articulated on Definition of keys terms; introduction to IWRM, IWRM concept and principles, importance of monitoring water resources and river basins, Water and Environment, Economics and financing of water supply/virtual water concept as well as  the Concept and implementation of participation.

Water governance remains a key challenge in the Mediterranean. Efforts of countries focus on improving policies making and action planning, institutional settings, law and regulation, enforcement mechanisms, innovative financing, application of cost recovery and polluter pays principle, etc. To achieve sustainable models of development, water must be mainstreamed into other sectoral policies such as agriculture, land planning and use, energy, industry, tourism and trade. Political will is key for making these happen. The importance of cross-cutting issues, such as gender, equity, poverty and rights, is increasingly recognized but is still relatively poorly tackled.

With natural water supplies no longer meeting the growing demand in several countries throughout the region, non-conventional water resources, such as treated wastewater reuse and desalination, are increasingly becoming an additional contributor to water availability. Related environmental, energy, health and other impacts need to be carefully considered while defining the potentials and limitations of such options. Improving non-conventional options demands better planning and regulation; coordinated investment; monitoring of operations; building managerial capacity; and, where relevant, mitigating their negative impacts including along the coastline. Overall, where development of non-conventional options is necessary, it should be combined with water demand management actions. In relation and beyond these, a strong demand for integrated urban water management, including through blue-green approaches and practices, has emerged.

Three IDMP CEE initiatives were developed into case studies for ISEPEI.

The Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) will be hosting a National Stakeholder Consultation in Trinidad on April 16^th, 2014 which forms part of a global consultation exercise to get country level feedback from twenty-six (26) countries on proposals for a dedicated Water Goal in the United Nations (UN) Post-2015 Development Agenda.