From 26 to 29 November 2019, a tour was organized to disseminate at the local level, reviews on the management of the Water, Hygiene and Sanitation sectors. The results of the report on the mapping of integrity risks in the said sector were also shared in a separate meeting.
The Caribbean Science Symposium on Water by the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C), takes place virtually on March 23rd – 25th, 2021 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Atlantic Standard Time (AST) on each day. The theme of the event is “Building Resilience in the Regional Water Sector to Address Climatological and Hydrological Risks and Threats.”
GWP-Med is leading the communication and dissemination component in this new H2020 project which aims to close the gap between science and policy in natural resources management. The REXUS project is bringing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus concept to an operational level as a tool for analysis, planning and decision-making, through an innovative integrated approach applied in 5 pilot sites across Europe and Latin America.
On 27 April, GWP organised a learning exchange on the topic, “IWRM Action Planning to Accelerate Progress on SDG 6”. The event had over 150 participants who shared their experiences on how to accelerate Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) to contribute to the achievement of the water-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Stakeholders from the political sphere, scientists, activists, and professionals that participated at the online workshop “Gender dimensions in the sustainable management of natural resources through a Nexus approach in the Drina River Basin” acknowledged the fact that women are disproportionately affected by natural disasters and should have a more active role in decision making on environmental issues.
GWP West Africa held its statutory meetings in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from 23 to 26 September on the theme "Accelerating progress in IWRM implementation to achieve water-related SDGs in West Africa: challenges, innovative approaches and roles of partnerships". These include the meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee on 23 September; the Steering Committee on 24 September 2019; and the Assembly of Partners (AP) on 26 September 2019. On 25 September, the regional dialogue was held in collaboration with the Ministry of Water and Sanitation of Burkina Faso, the ECOWAS Water Resources Management Centre and the West African Monetary and Economic Union (UEMOA).
“Integrated water resources management says it all. We have to talk about the inter-dependencies of water. Water is life, we say, and it really connects to everything … If water is connected to everything, we have to act on that, but we shy away from the real understanding of what water means … either because of its complexity … or because it is connected to past practices and vested interests.”
In an interview for GWP-Med Newsflow, Mr Almotaz Abadi, Managing Director for Water, at the Union for the Mediterranean - Water and Environment Division, discusses regional efforts to address water scarcity and climate challenges, the key ingredients of impactful UfM projects, ways to adapt to COVID-19 effects, and the necessity of adopting a proactive approach for realizing the SDGs.
