August 2014: The UN-Water Decade Programme on Advocacy and Communication (UNW-DPAC), the UN University (UNU) and the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) have released a report, titled ‘Partnerships for Improving Water and Energy Access, Efficiency and Sustainability.’

The report emphasizes the importance of coordinated responses to water-energy nexus issues and notes that partnerships can help in promoting and effectively implementing actions. The report also outlines key lessons on partnerships including: water and energy challenges are consubstantial to economic progress; water and energy access have critically immediate impacts on poverty alleviation; water and energy supplies are strongly linked to each other; future challenge will depend on current responses; and partnerships are required to improve water and energy access, efficiency and sustainability, at different levels and among all stakeholders.

The report underscores that partnerships will have to address barriers, including: traditional water and energy investment and planning based on existing resources; the mutual ignorance of each sector in the water and energy community; the reliance on engineered solutions; existing incentives that are still designed to deal with water and energy separately; and the historically separate regulation and management of the sectors, despite the linkages between water and energy.

The report includes chapters on: the UN and the water-energy nexus; water and energy scenarios and challenges; the water and energy nexus opportunities and choices; making the case for partnerships; building partnerships; and key lessons on partnerships. [Publication: Partnerships for Improving Water and Energy Access, Efficiency and Sustainability]