8 July 2014: The 21st session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Hydrological Programme (IHP) of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) met from 18-20 June 2014, adopting decisions, including on the post-2015 development agenda and the establishment of water-related centres, and reviewing past activities.

The meeting, which took place in Paris, France, brought together the 36 member States of the Council, as well as 55 non-member State delegations, in addition to representations from the UN system, and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Key outcomes included adoption of resolutions: recommending water as a stand-alone Sustainable Development Goal (SDG); endorsing the World’s Large Rivers Initiative (WRLI); approving elements for the establishment the UNESCO category 1 Institute, HIDROEX International Institute for Education, Capacity Building and Applied Research; and endorsing establishment of six category 2 water-related centres, including the African Regional Centre for Ecohydrology (ARCE) in Ethiopia, the Central Laboratory for Environmental Monitoring (CLEQM) in Egypt, the Integrated and Multi-Disciplinary Water Resources Management Center in Greece, the Water Research Centre in Kuwait, the International Centre for the Integrated Management of Watershed and Bio-resources in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions in Iran, and the Regional Water Research Centre (RWRC) in Pakistan.

David Korenfeld (Mexico) was elected as Chair of the IHP Intergovernmental Council for 2014-2016. Mitja Brilly (Slovenia), Ian White (Australia), Patrice Jourda (Côte d’Ivoire) and Mahmoud Abu-Zeid (Egypt) were elected as Vice-Chairs, while the past Chair, Johannes Cullmann (Germany), remains an ex officio member of the Bureau. [UNESCO Press Release]