European Union

A delegate pours water into a globe to symbolize commitment to transboundary cooperation and water diplomacy On Friday, MOP8 participants resumed discussions on National Policy Dialogues and the European Water Initiative. They then moved into discussions on the water-food-energy-ecosystems nexus in transboundary basins, the International Water Assessment Centre, and efforts to identify, assess, and communicate the benefits of water cooperation. Representatives from the Sio-Malaba-Malakisi river basin in East Africa and Okavango-Cubango river basin in Southern Africa highlighted efforts to assess and communicate benefits of cooperation in their regions. Delegates also discussed how climate change adaptation will compound management challenges in transboundary river basins worldwide. They heard a report from the African Development Bank on a training conducted in Dakar in June 2017 on how to prepare bankable projects for financing adaptation in transboundary contexts. Delegates adopted the programme of work for 2019-2021 and approved the requested budget of US$12.1 million. The programme will further support the opening of the Water Convention to parties outside the pan-European region, facilitating accession of new parties, implementation of the Convention principles, and awareness raising about the benefits of transboundary water cooperation. Estonia offered to host MOP9 in 2021. Throughout the day, delegates from countries that share transboundary basins, rivers, and aquifers gathered at the entrance to the conference center to participate in a symbolic action. Groups from the Danube, Mekong, Okavango, and Kura basins, among many others, poured water into a globe to demonstrate their commitment to transboundary cooperation and water diplomacy. At the close of the meeting, delegates adopted a package of decisions by acclamation and elected the new Chair, Vice-Chairs, and bureau members. Outgoing MOP Chair Peter Kovács expressed his appreciation to all colleagues for their contribution, and to the Water Convention Secretariat and the Kazakh hosts. In closing remarks, Yerlan Nyssanbayev, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan, hailed MOP8 as milestone meeting, as it was the first with participants from all continents. MOP8 Chair Péter Kovács closed the meeting at 6:11 pm. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage and a summary report from MOP8.   Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Morning Session Delegates during the morning session Seppo Rekolainen, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Finland Péter Kovács, MOP8 Chair, Hungary Boško Kenjić, Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Bosnia and Herzegovina Rachi Taibi, Consultation Mechanism of the North-West Sahara Aquifer System (NWSAS) Callist Tindimugaya, Ministry of Water and Environment, Uganda Claudio Bacigalupi, International Cooperation and Development, European Commission Harry Liiv, Ministry of Environment, Estonia Tracy Molefi, Permanent Okavango-Cubango River Basin Commission (OKACOM), Botswana Francis Bougaire, African Development Bank (AfDB) Niels Vlaanderen, Co-Chair of the Task Force on Water and Climate, the Netherlands Jos Timmerman, the Netherlands Paola Albrito, UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) Afternoon Session View of the dais during the afternoon session Ardak Zebeshev, Kazakhstan Heide Jekel, Co-Chair of the Joint Ad Hoc Expert Group on Water and Industrial Accidents (JEG), Germany Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE Serik Akhmetov, Director, International Water Assessment Centre (IWAC) Carlos Rodríguez Brianza, Uruguay Birgitta Liss Lymer, Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) Christian Schilling, EU Lea Kauppi, Finland Anne-Marie Reckinger, Luxembourg Yerlan Nyssanbayev, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE, presents Péter Kovács, MOP8 Chair, Hungary, with a gift Péter Kovács, MOP8 Chair, Hungary, hands over the chairmanship to Ardak Zebeshev, incoming MOP9 Chair, Kazakhstan Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE, thanks Péter Kovács, MOP8 Chair, Hungary, for his 'super human efforts' throughout the MOP process Around the Venue Water Convention Secretariat family photo Members of UNECE and UNISDR stand with the newly launched publication 'Implementation guide for addressing water-related disasters and transboundary cooperation' Members of Water Convention Bureau Youth volunteers assisting with the meeting The 'single river of objects' artistic installation symbolizing the cooperation between parties that is necessary to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Carolina Caycedo, Visual Artist, Colombia, who created the artistic installation One of the objects in the installation Delegates representing countries from the Danube basin pour water into a globe to symbolise their commitment to transboundary water cooperation Delegates representing countries from the Mekong basin Delegates representing countries from the Volta basin Delegates representing countries from the Kura basin Delegates representing countries from the Rhine basin Delegates from Russia Delegates from Kazakhstan Delegates from East Africa The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB+) team covering the meeting: Katie Browne, US; Dina Hestad, Norway; Asterios Tsioumanis, Greece; and Kiara Worth, South Africa  

A wooden carving from West Africa, part of the 'river of objects' art installation On Thursday, MOP8 delegates began the day with continued discussion on reporting under the Water Convention, with a focus on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Indicator 6.5.2 (proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation). Speakers highlighted the breakthrough the SDG indicator represents, as transboundary water cooperation is now included in the global indicator framework for the SDGs and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Representatives of UN-Water, UNECE, and UNESCO also presented on progress on reporting. Delegates also discussed the opening of the Water Convention for adoption by countries outside the pan-European region, with the Secretariat commending Chad and Senegal as the first non-UNECE parties to join and noting that many other countries are in the process of joining. Mahamat Alifa Moussa, Secretary General, Ministry of Environment, Water, and Fisheries, Chad, and Niokhour Ndour, Ministry of Water and Sanitation, Senegal, presented on lessons learned in the accession process. Delegates also addressed the Water Convention’s increased visibility, major milestones since MOP7, and plans for future work. Nine additional countries announced their intention to accede. Recalling that parties at MOP7 had decided to “make the Convention fit for its new global nature,” MOP8 adopted a new global strategy. The strategy includes key objectives to increase: awareness of and political support for the Water Convention; accession; support for implementation of the Convention and transboundary water management; support for implementation of water-related SDGs; and partnerships and synergies with other actors. MOP8 also adopted decisions on: implementation and compliance; supporting application of the Water Convention through on-the-ground projects and capacity development; and the European Union Water Initiative and National Policy Dialogues. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage and a summary report from MOP8.   Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Morning Session View of the dais during the morning session Péter Kovács, MOP8 Chair, Hungary Alistair Rieu-Clarke, Water Convention Secretariat Mahamat Alifa Moussa, Secretary General, Ministry of Environment, Water, and Fisheries, Chad Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE Delegates during the session Jamal Mohsin Ali, Ministry of Water Resources, Iraq Niokhor Ndour, Ministry of Water and Sanitation, Senegal William Reidhead, UN-Water Hayet Ben Mansour, Tunisia Afternoon Session View of the dais during the afternoon session Dragana Jovanovic, Serbian Institute for Public Health, Serbia Sibylle Vermont, Federal Office for the Environment, Switzerland Christian Severin, Global Environment Facility (GEF) Vladimir Mamaev, UN Development Programme (UNDP) Marie-Flore Michel, France Andrés Sánchez, Organization of American States (OAS) Ababacar Ndao, Secretary General, Gambia River Development Organization (OMVG) Francis Bougaire, African Development Bank (AfDB) Aneta Nikolova, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Sarangoo Radnaragcha, Regional Advisor for Environment, UNECE Olcay Ünver, Vice-Chair, UN-Water Attila Tanzi, Chair, Water Convention Implementation Committee Carmen Neagu, Romania Around the Venue Delegates from Austria Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE, speaks with a delegate Delegates speak informally Objects brought by delegates that will feature in the art installation - a 'single river of objects' representing the cooperation between parties that is necessary to achieve the SDGs Tools are lined up as the artistic installation gets underway Materials on display around the venue A photographic exhibit displaying the different water environments in Kazakhstan  

Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, UNECE, with Umirzak Shukeyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan The eighth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention MOP8), serviced by the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), kicked off today in Astana, Kazakhstan with a high-level workshop on “Financing Transboundary Basin Development.” Over 80 participants from 29 countries gathered to discuss different financing sources for transboundary basin cooperation and how to match these sources to financing needs. Welcoming participants to Kazakhstan, Umirzak Shukeyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan, highlighted the need for effective solutions for financing of and cooperation on transboundary basin development. Pio Wennubst, Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation, Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, UNECE, and Ato Brown, World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan, also addressed the attendees. Participants then engaged in an interactive exercise on transboundary financing, followed by two ministerial roundtables. In the first roundtable, participants discussed: availability of domestic sources and mechanisms to access these sources; potential to mobilize the private sector, including through blended finance; the role of international funding sources, including climate finance; how basin investment plans and strategies can help mobilize financing; and how project preparation facilities support initial project development. In the second roundtable, participants shared views on financing needs, including for information, water cooperation processes and institutions, and infrastructure. Danilo Türk, Chairman, Global High-Level Panel on Water and Peace, moderated a concluding panel. Moderators for each of the roundtables reported on key messages and topics of discussion. Türk highlighted the differing modalities to fund transboundary water cooperation and underscored that the challenge is to bring them together. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage and a summary report from MOP8.   Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Opening Session View of the dais during the opening session Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, UNECE Umirzak Shukeyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan Pio Wennubst, Vice Director General, Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (SDC) Ato Brown, World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan Ministerial Roundtables: Exploring Different Financial Sources and Bringing them Together Delegates gather for the ministerial roundtables Susanne Schmeier, UNECE Francesca Bernardini, Secretary of the Water Convention, UNECE Delegates participate in an interactive exercise to discuss transboundary financing, examining the multiple uses and needs of water in and across different countries, discussing how to make the most optimal use of available funding, and placing monetary value for transboundary development categories Theme 1 - What different domestic public sources are available and which innovative mechanisms can be used to tap them? Theme 2 - How can the potential of the private sector (including through blending of public and private finance) be best mobilized? Theme 3 - What should be the role of international funding sources (both international funding institutions and donors), including climate funds, and how should it evolve? Theme 4 - How can basin investment plans and financing strategies help to mobilise sustainable financing for transboundary basin cooperation and development? Theme 5 - How can project preparation facilities and other mechanisms support the initial phases of project development in transboundary basins? Working Groups: Matching Financing Sources to Financing Needs Theme A – Financing information for transboundary basin development Theme B – Financing transboundary water cooperation processes and institutions Theme C – Financing infrastructure in transboundary basins Plenary: Moving Forward View of the dais during the report back session Danilo Türk, Chairman, Global High-Level Panel on Water and Peace Sonja Koeppel, Water Convention Secretariat Christian Severin, Global Environment Facility (GEF) Jelle Beekma, Asian Development Bank (ADB) Iskandar Abdullaev, Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program (CAREC) Francis Bougaire, African Development Bank (AfDB) Nick Marchesi, European Investment Bank (EIB) Lea Kauppi, Finland Niels Vlaanderen, the Netherlands Christina Leb, World Bank Iskandar Abdullaev, Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Claudio Bacigalupi, EU Yerlan Nyssanbayev, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan Around the Venue Delegates gather for the start of the high-level workshop Umirzak Shukeyev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture, Kazakhstan, enters the venue with Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, UNECE Delegates speak informally between sessions