October 2017 Newsletter

The Executive Board of the International Fund of the Aral Sea (IFAS) in the Republic of Kazakstan in cooperation with the Kazak National Agrarian University (KazNAU) supported by the Central-Asian Regional Network of Capacity Building in the Area of Water Resources (CAR@WAN) and other partners, conducted the International Scientific and Practical Conference on “Transboundary Cooperation in Central Asia – Safety, Stability, and Welfare of the Whole Region". The conference which took place on from 7 to 8 September 2017 was dedicated to the 25^th anniversary of the Interstate Commission of Water Coordination and the process of preparing to the 8^th World Water Forum (March 2018, Brazil).

The Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) of Germany is supporting the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) to strengthen its capacities to improve sustainable and transboundary groundwater management in the region. In this context, BGR implemented a four-day groundwater training in the month of October 2016. This training was conceptualised based on the training manual “Integration of Groundwater Management into Transboundary Basin Organizations in Africa“. This process of developing this manual manual was a collective effort and support by AGW-Net, BGR, IGRAC, Cap-Net UNDP, IWMI, and the former GW-MATE team of the World Bank.

In general, the manual offers a variety of important groundwater topics. The topics are up to date, well -structured and based on facts. To identify relevant topics, BGR presented the manual to LCBC, followed by a common discussion about specific interests. This approach ensured, that the training addresses specific needs and that the knowledge gained, is used by the participants on a daily work basis. In total, eight different topics were selected and one field trip was conducted to include a more practical component in the training.

As it is proved by positive feedback of the participants, BGR can highly recommend the usage of this manual as a training tool.

The Comoros Ministry of Production, Environment, Energy, Industry and Crafts hosted a stakeholder workshop to validate a National Plan on Integrated Water Management for Comoros on the 5 of September 2017. Its objective was to establish a framework for collaboration and implementation of political, legislative, institutional and economic reforms with a view to achieving sustainable water resources management and supporting the socio-economic development of the country.
 
Stakeholders and sectors associated with water management in the country all gathered on Thursday and Friday to finalise discussions and officially endorse the document. The IWRM plan for Comoros is based on three pillars: economic efficiency, social equity and environmental preservation.
 
This plan will help the government achieve its vision for the water and sanitation sector by establishing a high-performing, accessible and equitable water management and distribution system by 2030. The current state of water resources management in Comoros points to weaknesses that greatly hampers the achievement of equitable and efficient management of water resources to the detriment of the population and the environment of the archipelago.
 
If implemented, this plan will ensure an efficient, accessible and equitable management of the water resources at national level. It will support the water sector through a system capable of satisfying the demand for drinking water and sanitation needs of the population, with a special focus on the most vulnerable communities, says Professor Raphael Tshimanga, who is also the Coordinator of CB-HYDRONET.