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AMCOW Bulletin
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French version
IISD Reporting Services
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Published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development
(IISD) <http://iisd.ca>
Vol. 4 No. 3
Monday, 28 May 2007
SIXTH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE AFRICAN MINISTERS' COUNCIL ON WATER:
28-31 MAY 2007
The sixth Ordinary Session of the African Ministers' Council on Water
(AMCOW-6) <http://www.iisd.ca/africa/water/amcow/> will take place from
30-31 May 2007, at the Palais du Parlement, in Brazzaville, Republic of
Congo. In the lead up to the session, a range of events and meetings
will be held on 28-29 May. On Monday, 28 May, a Youth Forum on Water
will take place, alongside AMCOW subregional consultations, and a Forum
for Civil Society and Media. On Tuesday, 29 May, the AMCOW Executive
Committee will convene to receive communications from subregional groups
and recommendations from the AMCOW Technical Advisory Committee.
When AMCOW-6 <http://www.iisd.ca/africa/water/amcow/> commences on
Wednesday, 30 May, ministers will meet for roundtable discussions on
partnership issues relating to the financing of water infrastructure;
access to the EU-ACP Water Facility; resources for the African Water
Facility; follow-up to the G8-Africa Water Action Plan; follow-up to the
Africa Commission Report; tracking commitments towards the attainment of
the targets created at the World Summit on Sustainable Development and
those in the Millennium Development Goals; collaboration between the UN
Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation and AMCOW;
and preparations for the 2008 Year of Sanitation. On Thursday, 31 May,
ministerial discussions will focus on water infrastructure development,
water supply and sanitation, and climate change impacts and adaptation.
Side events focusing on groundwater management in Africa, the promotion
of rain harvesting in Africa, and the Congo River Basin are also
scheduled to take place during the meeting.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF AMCOW AND RELATED MEETINGS
AMCOW's mission is to provide political leadership, policy direction and
advocacy in the provision, use and management of water resources for
sustainable social and economic development and for the maintenance of
African ecosystems. To meet these objectives, AMCOW actively reviews the
state of Africa's water and promotes actions of common African interest
by all stakeholders. It also facilitates regional and international
cooperation through the coordination of water resources policies and
actions among African countries.
AMCOW consists of a Council of Ministers and an Executive Committee
(ExCom). The ExCom is composed of three water ministers or
representatives from each of the African subregions, namely, Western
Africa, Eastern Africa, Central Africa, Northern Africa and Southern
Africa. The ExCom ensures that decisions of the Council of Ministers are
implemented, develops work programmes and budgets for approval by the
Council of Ministers, and mobilizes the necessary financing for, and
supervises the work of, the AMCOW Secretariat. The ExCom is advised in
its activities by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC).
INAUGURAL MEETING OF AMCOW: The inaugural AMCOW meeting was held in
Abuja, Nigeria, on 30 April 2002. At this meeting, ministers adopted the
"Abuja Ministerial Declaration on Water: A Key to Sustainable
Development in Africa," which includes the resolution that establishes
AMCOW and sets out its vision, objectives, institutional arrangements,
and other aspects.
G8 KANANASKIS SUMMIT: The 2002 G8 Summit was held in Kananaskis, Canada,
from 26-27 June 2002. In response to an invitation from African leaders,
the Summit adopted the G8 Africa Action Plan, which includes provisions
supporting African efforts to improve water resources development and
management.
WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (WSSD)
<http://www.iisd.ca/2002/wssd/> : The WSSD
<http://www.iisd.ca/2002/wssd/> was held from 26 August to 4 September
2002, in Johannesburg, South Africa. In the Johannesburg Plan of
Implementation (JPOI), governments reaffirmed their commitment to the
safe drinking water and human settlements goals agreed to in the
Millennium Declaration, and further committed to halve by 2015 the
proportion of people without access to basic sanitation. Governments
also agreed to develop integrated water resources management (IWRM) and
water efficiency plans by 2005. The international community also agreed
to support Africa's efforts to promote IWRM, optimize the upstream and
downstream benefits from the further development and effective
management of water resources, and protect water quality and aquatic
ecosystems.
FIRST MEETING OF THE AMCOW STEERING COMMITTEE: The first meeting of the
AMCOW Steering Committee was held from 23-24 May 2003, in Dakar,
Senegal. The meeting emphasized that the supply and quality of
freshwater in Africa remains one of the most critical issues of the
twenty-first century. The meeting adopted the "NEPAD Statement on
International Solidarity with Africa for the achievement of the
water-related targets in the Millennium Development Goals and the
outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development."
G8 EVIAN SUMMIT: The 2003 G8 Summit was held from 1-3 June 2003, in
Evian, France. At the Summit, G8 leaders adopted a water-related action
plan focusing on promoting good governance, utilizing financial
resources, building infrastructure by empowering local authorities and
communities, strengthening monitoring, assessment and research, and
reinforcing engagement of international organizations. They agreed to
support the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) through two
initiatives in the field of transboundary water management, which focus
on strengthening cooperation among river basin organizations and seek to
map donor support by developing an overview of the current activities of
G8 member states in this field.
PAN-AFRICAN CONFERENCE ON WATER: The Pan-African Implementation and
Partnership Conference on Water (PANAFCON)
<http://www.iisd.ca/csd/rim/eca/> , met from 8-12 December 2003, in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ministers agreed to establish national task
forces on water and sanitation and to create national plans with service
delivery targets for achieving water and sanitation goals by 2015. They
signed a joint declaration with the European Commission on the
implementation of the African-EU Strategic Partnership on Water Affairs
and Sanitation. Ministers also launched a number of initiatives,
including: the African Water Facility (AWF), the African Water Journal,
the Phase II of the Water for African Cities Programme, and the G8
Action Plan on Water for Africa.
FOURTH ORDINARY SESSION OF AMCOW: The fourth Ordinary Session of AMCOW
took place on 10 December 2003, during PANAFCON
<http://www.iisd.ca/csd/rim/eca/> in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ministers
endorsed the outcome of the African Regional Implementation Meeting for
presentation as Africa's contribution to the twelfth session of the UN
Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-12)
<http://www.iisd.ca/csd/csd12/> . They also agreed to present the
PANAFCON <http://www.iisd.ca/csd/rim/eca/> recommendations to the
second Extraordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Assembly, held in
February 2004, in Libya.
SECOND EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE AU ASSEMBLY: The second
Extraordinary Session of the AU Assembly, took place from 27-28 February
2004, in Sirte, Libya, and adopted the Sirte Declaration on the
Challenges of Implementing Integrated and Sustainable Development of
Agriculture and Water in Africa. In the declaration, leaders agreed to:
promote the strengthening and establishment of centers of excellence
and/or networks on crops, animals, forestry, fisheries, range
management, water management, desertification, drought, floods and
environmental management; support AMCOW in its role of preparing plans
and policies related to water resources management on the continent;
encourage bilateral agreements on shared water resources and enjoin
regional economic communities to develop appropriate regional protocols
to guide IWRM; strengthen existing river and lake water basin
organizations and establish new ones wherever appropriate; and adopt the
AWF and acknowledge the African Water Vision 2025. Leaders also declared
support for AMCOW and its role in developing plans and policies related
to the management of all water resources in Africa and recommended
integrating AMCOW into the AU as one of its Specialized Technical
Committees.
FIFTH ORDINARY SESSION OF AMCOW: The fifth Ordinary Session of AMCOW was
held from 4-6 November 2004, in Entebbe, Uganda, and addressed various
water policy challenges in Africa, including meeting the goals of the AU
and NEPAD, financing, and strategies to achieve international water and
sanitation targets. Outcomes from the session included agreement on: a
Memorandum of Understanding on institutional arrangements; the AMCOW
Rules of Procedure; the AMCOW 2005-2007 work programme; modalities for
establishing the AMCOW Trust Fund and its hosting within UNEP; a
regional position for CSD-13 <http://www.iisd.ca/csd/csd13/> on
implementing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and related
targets on water; and a concept proposal on the German G8 transboundary
water initiative.
INTERSESSIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
THIRTEENTH SESSION OF THE UN COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT:
CSD-13 <http://www.iisd.ca/csd/csd13/> took place from 11-22 April
2005, in New York, USA. CSD-13 <http://www.iisd.ca/csd/csd13/> focused
on policies and options to expedite the implementation of commitments in
the areas of water, sanitation and human settlements. Its main outcome
document identified the need to, inter alia, provide additional
resources, as appropriate, for regional and subregional initiatives, and
support African initiatives in the area of water, within the framework
of AMCOW.
SEVENTH MEETING OF THE AMCOW EXCOM: The seventh AMCOW ExCom and TAC
meetings were held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 27-30 June 2005.
Participants at the ExCom meeting focused on the AMCOW 2005-2007 work
programme, the AMCOW Trust Fund and strengthening AMCOW's work at the
national and subregional levels.
2005 WORLD SUMMIT: The 2005 World Summit was held in New York, USA, from
14-16 September 2005. In the Summit's Outcome Document, world leaders
resolved to assist developing countries' efforts to prepare IWRM and
water efficiency plans as part of their national development strategies,
and to provide access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation in
accordance with the Millennium Declaration and the JPOI.
CONFERENCE ON AFRICAN RIVER AND LAKE BASIN ORGANIZATIONS: The AMCOW
Conference of African River and Lake Basin Organizations took place in
Kampala, Uganda, from 19-20 October 2006, to chart the way forward for a
continent-wide effort to address Africa's water crisis. The conference
brought together senior-level African decision makers on water to agree
on the establishment and support for new river and lake basin
organizations while rejuvenating existing ones within the framework of a
region-wide mechanism under the auspices of AMCOW.
TWENTY-FOURTH SESSION OF THE UNEP GOVERNING COUNCIL/GLOBAL MINISTERIAL
ENVIRONMENT FORUM: The twenty-fourth session of UNEP's Governing
Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GC-24/GMEF)
<http://www.iisd.ca/unepgc/24unepgc/> took place from 5-9 February
2007, in Nairobi, Kenya. Decisions adopted by the GC/GMEF
<http://www.iisd.ca/unepgc/24unepgc/> included those on issues relating
to UNEP's updated water policy and strategy, and support to Africa in
environmental management and protection. The GC/GMEF
<http://www.iisd.ca/unepgc/24unepgc/> called upon African countries to
take primary action for sustainable development; requested the UNEP
Executive Director to work closely with partners to support African
countries in implementing NEPAD; and invited the UNEP Executive Director
to work closely with the AU Commission, AMCOW, NEPAD, and others to
undertake a policy-oriented assessment using available means.
INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND/WORLD BANK SPRING MEETINGS: At an event held
during the International Monetary Fund/World Bank Spring meetings, held
in Washington DC, USA, from 14-15 April 2007, it was agreed among
donors, international development institutions and developing countries
that they would take on new commitments to tackle the world's water and
sanitation crisis. Several donors committed to increase and improve
support to countries to expand water and sanitation services, including:
helping countries without water and sanitation plans to prepare them;
and renewing the commitment to the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation
Initiative.
The e AMCOW Bulletin is a publication of the International Institute for
Sustainable Development (IISD) <[EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >,
publishers of the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (c) <[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >. This issue was written and edited by Asheline
Appleton, Harry Jonas, Leila Mead and Hugh Wilkins. The Digital Editor
is Joe Nyangon. The Editor is Ingrid Barnsley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >. The Director of IISD Reporting Services is
Langston James "Kimo" Goree VI <[EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >.
The Programme Manager of the African Regional Coverage Project is
Richard Sherman <[EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >. Funding
for coverage of this meeting has been provided by South Africa's
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism through the
IISD/DEAT/UNEP ROA project for IISD Reporting Service coverage of
African regional meetings. IISD can be contacted at 161 Portage Avenue
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