GEF Drive for Sustainability at 4th World Water Forum
March 14, 2006. With the kickoff of the 4th World Water Forum on March 16 in Mexico City, global attention will once again focus on the role of water resources as drivers of development. In keeping with its mandate of mobilizing international cooperation to safeguard international waters, GEF is organizing a slate of exciting events that will be held throughout the Forum.
“The Forum is the world’s meeting point on water issues,” says Al Duda, Senior Advisor, GEF International Waters. “We will be participating actively, learning and sharing knowledge with participants and demonstrating the GEF’s role in promoting sustainable management of water resources.” Dr. Duda is leading the GEF delegation to the Forum.
A snapshot of events hosted by GEF and partners:
- Shared Groundwater Resources for Sustainable Management, in cooperation with UNESCO, featuring examples of success stories from Egypt and Northwest Sahara aquifer system (March 17, 1430-1630 hrs)
- Institutional Development for Integrated Water Resources Management with examples from the Sao Francisco river basin, Danube river, and Guarani aquifer (March 18, 1115-1315 hrs)
- Toward the Integrated Management of Rivers and Coasts, showcasing integrated water management examples from the Danube/Black Sea (March 18, 1115-1315)
- Participation of the Public and Solidarity in Basin Management, with France’s Academie de l’Eau, UNESCO, and others on ways in which public participation can support water conservation and management efforts (March 18, 1430-1630)
GEF and partners are teaming together through a state-of-the-art Internet-based knowledge and learning tool—International Waters Learning Exchange and Resource Network (IW:LEARN)—that will demonstrate the importance of partnerships in meeting the development challenges posed by the global water crisis (www.iwlearn.net).