March 2013: The Global Water Partnership (GWP) March edition of “News Flow” highlights the launch by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and GWP of a joint Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) to improve monitoring and prevention of droughts.
The newsletter features articles on GWP projects and workshops, including on: climate information in the Caribbean; integrated urban water management (IUWM) in El Salvador; water use efficiency in India; flood information in Pakistan; transboundary cooperation in South Africa; and integrated water resource management (IWRM) in Southern Africa. It also describes the application process for the 2013 International River Foundation (IRF) European Riverprize.
The Caribbean Weather Impacts Group (CARIWIG) organized a regional workshop in February 2013, in Jamaica, which gathered feedback from stakeholders across the Caribbean region, including GWP Caribbean, on the types of information managers and policymakers need to guide decision making and planning on climate change impacts on the agriculture, coastal resources and water sectors. CARWIG intends to share Caribbean specific climate change information through a web service that will include climate knowledge systems and weather-generator models.
The GWP El Salvador and GWP Central America offices organized a workshop on “Integrated Management of Urban Floods” in February 2013, in San Salvador, El Salvador. The workshop aimed to build regional capacity on IUWM and included participation from the public and private sectors.
The Indian Environmental Law Office (IELO) organized a national roundtable on “Water Use Efficiency” in New Dehli, India, which focused on a model framework for water use efficiency in the commercial, domestic and industrial urban sectors. Fifty institutions heard presentations on: the proposed framework; raising awareness on water use efficiency; and distribution and leakage challenges in urban water supplies.
GWP Pakistan and the UN Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) launched a project to upgrade early warning systems and flood forecasting in Pakistan. The project will also conduct risk mapping along the Indus River flood plains and develop knowledge platforms to share hydro-meteorological observations and data. As part of the project, UNESCO will train flood and water management experts at a workshop in April 2013.
UNESCO and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) held a workshop to “Promote Cooperation and Conflict Prevention in Transboundary Water Resources” in February 2013, in Gabarone, Botswana. Participants shared experiences on water cooperation and highlighted the importance of raising awareness on the benefits of water cooperation in SADC and of translating knowledge into tangible results. Participants also discussed a climate change mainstreaming project that will include consultations on water basin issues.
GWP Southern Africa is collaborating with SADC on the SADC Regional Strategic Action Plan IWRM III to implement the Protocol on Shared Watercourses through an IWRM approach. In February 2013, GWP Southern Africa finalized concept notes for four assessments on: vulnerable areas, people and sectors in the Orange-Senqu river basin, with the aim of investing in adaptive capacity to cope with climate change; development financing and water resources management in the SADC region, with the aim of increasing investment on resilience in the water sector; implementation of the SADC Regional Water Policy, including lessons learned; and indigenous knowledge systems and practices in IWRM that can contribute to resilience.
The IRF European Riverprize will recognize successful approaches to climate change, ecosystem health, river restoration and water quality in Europe. Short-listed applicants will be notified in April 2013 and prizes will be awarded in July 2013.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) founded the GWP in 1996 to promote IWRM. [IISD RS Story on the Launch of the Drought Programme] [Publication: GWP News Flow, March 2013]