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.
As an implementing partner in delivering components of the GiZ Transboundary Water Resources Management Programme Phase III in SADC, GWP SA is supporting stakeholder and Capacity needs analysis in the Limpopo and Orange-Senqu River Basins. This exercise falls under Programme 6 – Stakeholder Participation, under the “Mainstreaming Climate Change into the Water Sector within the SADC Region”.
A River Basin Management Plan of the Sava river basin is under development, the first attempt in the Southern European region to draft a River Basin Management Plan according to the EU Water Framework Directive. GWP Mediterranean and GWP Central and Eastern Europe have significantly contributed to the stakeholder involvement process related to development of the Plan.
Involving small water service providers (SWSPs) as partners in sustainable water service provision has undergone a major change. Prior to the efforts of GWP Philippines and its Partners, SWSPs were not formally recognised as government partners in achieving the MDG target on water service provision.
To increase awareness about key critical issues related to climate change challenges that Bangladesh is likely to face in the future, a training on “Climate Change Adaptation” was organized by the Institute of Water Modeling (IWM) and GWP Bangladesh, on 23-25 September 2012 in Dhaka.
With the introduction of IWRM, South Africa has shifted the design and implementation of water management to local institutions. This has created a demand for innovative methods for local stakeholders’ participation. Action was taken to introduce the participatory process Companion Modelling that is based on the use of simulation models and role playing games. Consequently, this case study illustrates new methods and tools that facilitate dialogue and improve decision-making skills of local stakeholders.
To increase awareness about key critical issues related to climate change challenges that Bangladesh is likely to face in the future, a training on “Climate Change Adaptation” was organized by the Institute of Water Modeling (IWM) and GWP Bangladesh, on 23-25 September 2012 in Dhaka.
The overexploitation and pollution of water resources of the San Jeronimo River, together with agricultural developments and deforestation, have generated conflicts between bordering communities. To address these, the San Jeronimo Basin Committee was created, mantling the role as a negotiating body and with a mission to implement IWRM. The key lesson learnt is that for success, it is crucial that local organisations take their social responsibility.
In 2000, GWP developed the IWRM ToolBox. Broadly defined, the ToolBox consists of a wide range of materials such as case studies and reference documents dealing with water resource management.
GWP Chair Dr Letitia A Obeng participated in the side event ‘The Water We Want: Youth Act for Water’ on 12 October 2012 at the UN General Assembly in New York. The event was a partnership between the Belgian Youth Delegates to the UN and the World Youth Parliament for Water, hosted by the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.