ECLAC participation in the side event organized by the Stockholm Environmental Institute in New York

On Thursday, March 23, 2023, the parallel event “Innovation in Water Governance: Breaking limits for water and climate” was held. This event was organized during the second day of the United Nations Water Conference, in New York. Its objective was to show the experiences and best practices to close the key gaps in sustainable and equitable access to water, thinking about inclusive participatory approaches, climate-oriented actions, macroeconomic impacts around water and the consideration of ecosystems.

To begin with, Dr. Marisa Escobar, Director of the Water Program at the Stockholm Environment Institute, offered a few words of welcome. She was followed by the first panel, which sought actions to encourage cooperation and collaboration. It was highlighted that sustainable water management must go beyond the basin, with participatory processes based not only in one place, but also considering intersectoral and macroeconomic implications, as well as decision-making outside the basin. The panel included the participation of Dr. Emmanuel Rukundo, Director General of the Rwanda Water Resources Board, Ms. Joy Busolo, Senior Specialist in Water Resources Management at the World Bank and Mr. Thanapon Piman, Senior Researcher at the Institute Stockholm Environment.

Then, the second panel was given, where actions to maintain the health of the ecosystem and implement management from the source to the sea were discussed. Panelists commented on how ecosystems should be considered throughout the water planning and management process, incorporating ecosystem needs and processes.

The second panel included Dr. Grant Davis, General Manager of the Sonoma Water Utility of California, USA, Dr. Johan Kling, Head of the Water Resources Management Department of the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management, and Dr. David Lymer, Head of Unit, Principal Specialist in Water, Sanitation and Ocean Policy at the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.

Finally, in the third panel, which tried to find actions to increase the exchange of knowledge and inclusive decision-making, the panelists presented different efforts that are being promoted by the institutions involved. The panel included the participation of Mr. Fabián Caicedo, Director of Integral Management of Water Resources of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia, Ms. Marissa Castro, General Director of Limits, Borders and International Transboundary Waters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bolivia and Ms. Rayén Quiroga, Head of the Water and Energy Unit of the Natural Resources Division of ECLAC. Here, Ms. Quiroga presented the Regional Water Action Agenda, the main outcome of the Regional Water Dialogues that took place in February 2023. The Agenda aligns and reinforces various previous treaties, agreements and strategies on water management. water and constitutes a call to action to mobilize all the political, technical and financial resources of the region. In particular, the Agenda highlights the areas for prioritization and the efforts needed to accelerate the achievement of SDG 6.

The event ended with closing remarks by representatives of the Stockholm Environment Institute and the Swedish Agency for International Development Cooperation.