CURRENTS - newsletter from the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP)

Issue n°25, May 2006

MAY IN FOCUS

22 May: International Day for Biological Diversity - Protect biodiversity in drylands

Drylands make up 47% of the land surface of the Earth. Home to rich biological diversity, they are also central to the livelihoods of almost 2 billion people. Drylands ecosystems receive very erratic rainfall, and as a result are very fragile.

Biodiversity in these ecosystems is under threat from a variety of human activities. The transformation of habitats for human use, mostly agricultural, and increases in over-exploitation, including overgrazing, has led to the degradation of up to 20% of drylands ecosystems - with stark results: desertification and drought, the endangerment of 2,311 species, the loss of over 40 billion dollars a year in lost agricultural production and the resulting rise of social, economic, and political tensions. Poverty has forced populations who are dependent on natural resources to overexploit already marginal lands in order to sustain their livelihoods.

The urgency of these issues has been recognized in the decision of the United Nations General Assembly to proclaim 2006 the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. To commemorate this year, the theme chosen for the International Day for Biological Diversity on 22 May 2006 is 'Protect biodiversity in drylands'.

:: More information at the official site for the International Day for Biological Diversity 2006

FORTHCOMING INTERNATIONAL DAYS

5 June: World Environment Day

Theme: Deserts and Desertification: 'Don't desert drylands!'
Organizer: the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
:: Website

20 June: World Refugee day

Theme: Keeping the flame of hope alive
Organizer: the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
:: Website

UPCOMING EVENTS

20-26 August: World Water Week, Stockholm, Sweden

The World Water Week in Stockholm is the leading annual global meeting place for experts from businesses, governments, the water management and science sectors, inter-governmental organizations, NGOs, research and training institutions and United Nations agencies.
:: Read more

WWAP NEWS

22 May: WWAP and the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie meet to discuss future cooperation

Marie-Françoise Bosque, Head of the International Action Department of the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie, met with WWAP programme officer Engin Koncagül, WWAP administration and budget coordinator Cornelia Hauke, WWAP editor Janine Treves-Habar and WWAP communication assistant Isabelle Brugnon to discuss future cooperation between the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie and WWAP.

The Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie creates travelling exhibits and educational resources for a worldwide audience with a focus on sustainable development. Together they discussed the possibilities of using the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report as a basis for the Cité's water-related exhibits and expo materials, and jointly creating a compact, interactive travelling exhibit to raise awareness on water-related issues.

12 June: Launch of the executive summary in Catalan, Barcelona, Spain

Unescocat and the Agbar Foundation are organizing a roundtable on 'Water in the cities of the 21st century' in Barcelona, Spain, on 12 June 2006. The roundtable will open with the launch of the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report's Executive Summary in Catalan, which will be presented by WWAP's deputy coordinator Carlos Fernández-Jáuregui. Mr. Fernández-Jáuregui will also speak on water and cities and the inter-agency perspectives in the UN during the event.

27 June: Water and cooperation in Latin America Encounter, Brussels, Belgium

Latin American ministers of the environment and the European Union signed a declaration on the implementation of a strategic partnership on water and sanitation during the 4^th World Water Forum in March 2006. Within this framework, the European Union Water Initiative (EUWI) is organizing this 'Cooperation in Latin America' workshop under the auspices of the Government of Spain and WWAP.

The main objectives of this workshop are to identify the existing cooperation tools and propose new ones to develop EUWI policy and contribute to the achievements of the water-related Millennium Development Goals in the region. Improvements are necessary in matters of water availability, sanitation, water policies and risk management.

Mr. Fernández-Jáuregui, WWAP deputy coordinator, will present the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2, 2006) during the inauguration session of the event and participate in the workshop.

WWAP CASE STUDIES

Full Ethiopia Case Study Report available online!

The full Ethiopia Case Study Report is now available online: This report examines Ethiopia's water-related challenges in terms of the 11 WWAP challenge areas.

As one of the poorest countries in the world, Ethiopia's ability to develop water and land resources for the promotion of socio-economic development is greatly limited by the fact that only 1 child out of 3 goes to school. The existing water and land resources cannot be put into use because of extreme poverty. The national funds are extremely limited and the investments made are not sufficient to break the vicious circle of poverty.

:: Read more about the Ethiopia Case Study
:: Read more about the WWDR2 Case Studies
:: Read the full Ethiopia case study report prepared for WWDR2 [PDF format - 1.84 MB]

Water as a human right: An example from the South Africa Case Study

Only a few countries have made formal legal commitments to acknowledge a right to water, but even fewer have matched an explicit right to water in their constitutions with actual implementation. One such example is South Africa, where the Bill of Rights of the Constitution states: 'Everyone has the right to have access to sufficient food and water.'

In South Africa, water scarcity is a limiting factor for development. The value of water is therefore high in all aspects of society, the economy and the environment. The social value of water is founded in the desperate need of the 3.6 million people (8% of the population) who currently do not have access to any water supply infrastructure, and the 9 million people (39% of the population) who do not receive minimum basic water supply services. Poverty is the foremost social concern, and the government aims to address the needs of the poorest in society by ensuring access to basic services through dedicated programmes for infrastructure and free basic water services. The government is giving increasing attention to social programmes in poverty-stricken areas to reduce the vulnerability of poor households. An example of this is the development of food plots and vegetable gardens for poor communities. Furthermore, institutional reform is underway to facilitate equitable access to water resources and representation in water management institutions.

South African water reform is a very comprehensive and innovative approach to water management, allowing for more holistic, people-centred and ecological approaches to the governance of water.

This is an excerpt from the South Africa Case Study Report, one of the case studies that was included in the case study chapter of the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water, a Shared Responsibility' (WWDR2, 2006).

:: Read more about the WWAP case studies
:: Read more about the WWDR2 Case Studies

WWAP PARTICIPATES

17 May: Lecture on Crises in Freshwater: Fundamental considerations

Mr. Gordon Young, WWAP coordinator, gave a lecture on the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2) entitled 'Crises in Freshwater: Fundamental Considerations' at the Oxford University Centre for the Environment, England, on 17 May 2006. The lecture was organized within the framework of the Oxford Centre for Water Research Seminar Series.

:: Read more

22-24 May 2006: User-Producer Conference on 'Water Accounting for Integrated Water Resource Management', Voorburg, the Netherlands

The conference, organized by the UN Statistics Division (UNSD) and hosted by Statistics Netherlands, aimed at raising awareness of water accounting as the hydrological-economic information system to support Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM). It sought to develop a dialogue between users and producers of water information by identifying the information needs for policy-making and how the water accounting framework meets these needs.

Mr. Gordon Young, WWAP coordinator, presented the 2^nd UN World Water Development Report, 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2) during the event, and took part in the panel discussion of the 1st session, 'Water Accounting for Integrated Water Resource Management'.

:: Read more

25-26 May: 3^rd North of Portugal - Galicia Civil Engineering Meetings on Water, Porto, Portugal

The Civil Engineering Association's Regional Council for North Portugal and the Galicia Road, Chanel and Harbour Engineers Association, Spain, have been organizing 'North of Portugal - Galicia Civil Engineering Meetings' on current strategic themes for bilateral development since 2001. This year, decision makers, specialists and professionals from universities, businesses and institutions of the region participated in work sessions, round tables and conferences focusing on water.

The main themes of the meetings were water and energy, water as a resource, extreme events and pollution, and water use regimes. Mr. Carlos Fernández-Jáuregui, WWAP deputy coordinator, presented the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2, 2006) during the event and participated in the opening conference, 'Water in the World'.

:: Read more (in Portuguese)
:: Read more about WWDR2

30 May - 2 June: III International Symposium on Transboundary Waters Management, Ciudad Real, Spain

The 3^rd International Symposium on Transboundary Water Management is devoted to identifying, exploring, and analyzing all of the boundaries related to water management. It aims to serve as an integrating element for the continuous transfer of knowledge through the presentation of new ideas and technologies. The symposium is expected to contribute to the advancement of sustainable frameworks for transboundary water management in various parts of the world.

Keynote speeches and panel discussions by recognized experts will address a range of critical topics. Mr. Carlos Fernández-Jáuregui, WWAP deputy coordinator, will present the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2, 2006) during the event.

:: Access the official website

WWAP PARTNERS WATER NEWS

29 May - 1 June: Beijing International conference on women and desertification, Beijing, China

To mark the 2006 International Year of Deserts and Desertification (IYDD) http://www.iydd.org/, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Secretariat, together with the governments of Algeria, China and Italy, will hold, from 29 May to 1 June, an international meeting on the role of women in combating desertification.

Experts in the fields of gender issues and sustainable development, representatives of civil society, as well as high-level country representatives and other eminent personalities will come together to share experiences and seek ways of empowering women as an effective means to counter land degradation and rural poverty.

Women's equal participation in the economic and political development of communities and countries has been recognized as a fundamental prerequisite for achieving international sustainable development commitments.

'Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and building good governance', said Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General.

In 1995, Beijing hosted the 4^th World Conference on Women. This resulted in the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which urged governments to vigorously address women's rights and gender equality as core development concerns.

:: Read more

5 June: World Environment Day 'Don't Desert Drylands!'

World Environment Day is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action. The Day, commemorated each year on 5 June, was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972. Another resolution, adopted by the General Assembly the same day, led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The World Environment Day theme selected for 2006 is Deserts and Desertification, with the slogan 'Don't Desert Drylands!' emphasizing the importance of protecting drylands, which cover more than 40% of the planet's surface. This ecosystem is home to one-third of the world's population who remain vulnerable members of society.

The Day aims is to give a human face to environmental issues; empower people to become active agents of sustainable and equitable development; promote an understanding that communities are pivotal to changing attitudes towards environmental issues; and advocate partnerships that will ensure that all nations and peoples enjoy a safer and more prosperous future.

World Environment Day is a people's event with colourful activities such as street rallies, bicycle parades, green concerts, essays and poster competitions in schools, tree planting, as well as recycling and clean-up campaigns.

:: Access the Day's official website
:: Access the UNESCO Director-General, Mr. Koïchiro Matsuura, message for World Environment Day 2006

FACTS AND FIGURES ON WATER IN AFRICA, IN CELEBRATION OF AFRICA DAY (25 MAY)

• Water scarcity is fundamentally a problem of the distributions of climate and human society, which vary greatly around the world. Compared to the global proportion of 52% of total population living in arid or semi-arid regions, approximately 75% of all Africans live in such conditions. In addition, 20% of all Africans live in areas that experience high inter-annual climatic variability. This explains why Africa suffers disproportionately from water scarcity and water stress compared to other continents.
• The disparities in water resources are blatant. For example, available per capita water resources in Peru are more than 60,000 m³/y, but only 1,000 m³/y in South Africa. Yet the incidence of poverty in Peru is greater than in South Africa, which means that a large amount of available water resources is not sufficient in and of itself to combat poverty; good management of these resources is also necessary.
• It is estimated that daily water use per inhabitant totals 600L in residential areas of North America and Japan and between 250L and 350L in Europe, while daily water use per inhabitant in sub-Saharan Africa averages just 10L to 20L.
• In sub-Saharan Africa, only 25% of the population has access to electricity, while 83% of the urban population and 46% of the rural population have access to a water supply.
• Drinking-water coverage in sub-Saharan Africa increased from 49% to 58% between 1990 and 2002. Yet this falls short of the progress needed to achieve the MDG target of 75% coverage by 2015.
• The fraction of urban population in Africa has nearly tripled in the last 50 years. By 2020, Africa's urban population is estimated to reach 500 million - up from 138 million in 1990. Malawi is the current fastest urbanizing nation due to population flight from severe flooding.
• Research on the changing urban water systems in Africa, where insufficient infrastructure is a major problem, indicates that while in the early 1970s many major cities still used groundwater supplies as their primary water source, by the 1990s primary sources were more likely to be rivers, and increasingly these river sources were more than 25 kilometres away.
• Throughout Africa, seasonal climate variation and unpredictable water depths limit the number of inland water bodies that are navigable. There are only three rivers classified as international waterways in Africa: the Congo, Nile and Zambezi rivers. Hydraulic work could, however, increase the number of potentially navigable rivers on the continent.
• The Congo-Zaire basin carries 33% of the river flow in Africa
• In sub-Saharan Africa, 84% of total water diversions is used in agriculture.
• Individual freshwater systems can be extremely important in supporting high numbers of endemic species. According to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, Lake Tanganyika in Central Africa, for example, supports 632 endemic animal species.

:: Facts and figures taken from the 2^nd United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water, a shared responsibility' (WWDR2, 2006).

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