In this issue:
- Training of Trainers Workshop on IWRM Approach to Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Measures - 12 to 16 May 2014, Kinshasa, Dr. Congo.
- SPLASH Sanitation Research Programme workshop – 20 to 21 June 2014, Kampala, Uganda.
- ‘Preparation of "Human rights-based approach to integrated water resources management (HRBA to IWRM)" training package meeting with Cap-Net Partners – 4 to 6 June 2014, Ilha do Fundao, Rio de Janeiro.
- 2014 Water Diplomacy Workshop - 23 to 27 June 2014, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
- Postponement of Gender, Water & Development Conference in East London, South Africa.
- Cap-Net Involvement in Stockholm World Water Week – 31 August to 5 September 2014, Stockholm.
- Cap-Net Welcomes Lan from Laos.
- Water Video of the Month.
1) Training of Trainers Workshop on IWRM Approach to Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Measures - 12 to 16 May 2014, Kinshasa, DR Congo.
A five day regional Training of Trainers workshop with the objective to “develop the capacity of stakeholders to better appreciate the impacts of climate change on water resources, and the ability to use the IWRM approach as a tool for climate change adaptation” was organized in Kinshasa from 12th -16th May 2014. The training was implemented by the Congo Basin Network for Research and Capacity Building in Water (CB-HYDRONET) with financial and technical support from CAP-NET, WATERNET, the Water and Climate Development Program (WACDEP) in GWP Central Africa and Southern Africa, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), University of Kinshasa and the DRC Ministry of Environment.
A total of 40 participants from 33 institutions and 13 countries drawn from a broad range of stakeholder groups (research and education, private sector, civil society, policy and decision makers from government, river basin organisations) participated in the training. The key highlight of the workshop was the field visit to the Lukaya River Basin, where a pilot IWRM project supported by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is implementing the innovative idea of the “River contract”. A key concern in 350km2 Lukaya River Basin area is the need to protect the raw water used to supply residents of Kinshasa and its environs with potable water, especially as activities of local enterprises such as farms (poultry, fish and agriculture), and sand and gravel quarries have a major negative impact on water quality. Participants also witnessed the impacts of floods on economic activities.
The final workshop evaluation by participants indicated that the workshop achieved its objective of improving their understanding of not only the concepts and principles of IWRM and climate change, but also the linkages between them.
The workshop ended with a CB-HYDRONET network meeting where it was agreed that key stakeholders like GWP Regional Water Partnership Secretariats (Central and Southern Africa), CICOS, IRD, ECCAS and SADC should be members of the Steering Committee of CB-HYRONET, and that the CB-HYDRONET growth strategy should be aligned to Africa Union (AU) Agenda for 2063. The full workshop report can be downloaded
here.
2) SPLASH Sanitation Research Programme workshop – 20 to 21 June 2014, Kampala, Uganda
Effective water research can play an important role in supporting developing nations to meet the challenge of providing poor people with access to safe water supplies and improved sanitation. SPLASH Research Program has aimed to coordinate research in the water and sanitation sector which has generally been programmed and managed in isolation by different donors to avoid overlapping and duplications of role. SPLASH and its partners conducted a workshop on 20th-21st June in Fairway Hotel, Kampala, Uganda to present the findings of this program and to discuss among professionals and practitioners in the sector. This workshop was jointly organised by Loughborough University, UK and Makarere University, Kampala, Uganda.
SPLASH sanitation research program has investigated the aspects of sanitation service provision in urban areas from the household to final disposal along the sanitation value chain. They are comprised of five projects namely ‘3KSan’, ‘U-Act’, ‘MAFADY’, ‘ClassA’, and ‘Fame’. Dr. Indika Gunawardena of Cap-Net UNDP took part in the workshop and the field visit. The findings will be published and will be beneficial for all networks to strengthen the sanitation programs. In addition to that, capacity development was identified as a key component to address the prevailing knowledge transformation gaps in the sector. Visit the
SPLASH website for more information.
3) Preparation of "Human rights-based approach to integrated water resources management (HRBA to IWRM)" training package meeting with Cap-Net Partners – 4 to 6 June 2014, Ilha do Fundao, Rio de Janeiro.
A three day meeting took place at the Cap-Net UNDP office in Ilha do Fundao in Rio de Janeiro from 4-6 June 2014, with the objective to develop material and plan future activities for the training manual in applying the human rights-based approach to integrated water resources management (HRBA to IWRM). This meeting was important because it strengthened the collaboration of the 4 partners, WaterLex (
http://www.waterlex.org/), UNDP Water Governance Facility at SIWI (
http://www.siwi.org/programmes/watergovernance/), REDICA (
http://redicanetwork.com/) and Cap-Net UNDP (
http://www.cap-net.org/) and contributions to capacity development in a topic that has not been technically elaborated yet in the field but that has impacts on sustainable water management. The outcomes of the meeting led to the finalisation of the content and structure of the manual and the facilitator guideline, the design of innovative tools for implementing HRBA to IWRM and the planning of the upcoming training of trainers in order to strengthen and enrich the utility of the material. In this way, the partners involved are ready to provide positive contributions in generating capacities to all the networks, organisations and key actors interested in this cross-cutting topic. For more information, please contact
Dr. Bekithemba Gumbo.
4) 2014 Water Diplomacy Workshop - 23 to 27 June 2014, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
The 2014 Water Diplomacy Workshop was a five-day joint-learning experience with the goal of building a global network of reflective water professionals. The workshop was organized by faculty from Tufts University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. Dr. Themba Gumbo, the Director of Cap-Net UNDP and Dr. Neena Rao SCaN who is a partner of Cap-Net; were part of the total of 32 participants from 17 different countries.
Apart from the water diplomacy workshop, Dr Themba Gumbo held discussions with potential partners; Tufts University, Harvard University and MIT on the development of training material on Water Diplomacy and conducting capacity development activities.
The Water Diplomacy AquaPedia Case Study Database idea was conceived in the water diplomacy workshop and is a freely accessible database of water case studies. Please join us to create, edit, or comment on
AquaPedia Case Studies or visit the official webpage for more information.
5) Postponement of Gender, Water & Development Conference in East London, South Africa.
We would like to announce the postponement of the Gender, Water and Development Conference which is scheduled to take place from 7 to 11 July 2014 in East London, South Africa. The newly appointed Minister of Water and Sanitation in the new South African government has expressed her concerns that holding the conference so soon in the term of office of the new government is not conducive to her, and the government, being able to fully engage with what she considers to be a critical issue, that of gender, water and development. As a result, the conference has been postponed to a later date, probably around October 2014.
We will keep you updated on any new developments and confirmation of the new dates.
For more information, please visit the
official website.
6) Cap-Net Involvement in Stockholm World Water Week – 31 August to 5 September 2014, Stockholm.
Convenors: UNDP Water Governance Facility at SIWI and Water Integrity Network
Co-convenor(s):Cap-Net UNDP and UNDP Global Anti-corruption Initiative
Please contact the Deputy Director/HR Specialist of Cap-Net UNDP
Mr. Kees Leendertse for more information about these events.
7) Cap-Net Welcomes Lan from Laos
Cap-Net welcomes Lan (Phousavanh FONGKHAMDENG ) from the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). Lan joins Cap-Net as Network attachment in Partnership Development for 3 months. Lan holds a Bachelor Degree on Environmental Science from the Centre for the Environment and Development Studies (CEDS), National University of Laos. He is a government official attached to the Department of Water Resources (DWR), Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) of Lao PDR. He has experience with IWRM implementation at national, regional, river basin and sub-basin levels, contributing to national water resources strategy, law and related legislation development, national and international cooperation affairs for IWRM with various development partners and donors. Lan has also been involved as a project manager for IWRM related projects in Lao PDR. He has been designated as a national coordinator for ASEAN working group in water resources management, national alternate steering committee member for Global Water Partnership-Southeast Asia (GWP-SEA), national focal point for AguaJaring Network SEA and acts as an interim steering committee member for Lao PDR. In the region, he gained extensive experience in joining the on-the-job training as junior riparian professional in Mekong River Commission Secretariat. He is an excellent communicator with good human relations. A team player, Lan loves to travel and study. He can be contacted at lan.phousavanh@cap-net.org
The Stockholm World Water Week 2014 is back and will take place from 31 of August 2014. In this year’s event, Cap-Net UNDP will be (co-) convening two seminars and a side event. They are as follows: