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THE INPIM E-NEWSLETTER June 18, 2007; Number 65 http://www.inpim.org ihussain@inpim.org
Welcome to the INPIM E-Newsletter # 65 NEWS
Ø INPIM’s Third International Capacity Building Program on Participatory Irrigation Management, 21 – 30 October 2007, Izmir, Turkey Ø Leveraging Water Resources to Meet African Needs Ø Investing in Water Governance - Luxury or Priority? Ø Water Tops Africa’s Development Agenda - Commends AfDB Water and Sanitation Initiative Ø ADB, UN Body Make a Joint Statement to Help Asia's Poor Get Better Access to Water, Sanitation Ø FAO Launching of an Important Project to Fight Drought in Morocco Ø African Water Project Supported by Space Ø South Asian Water Utilities Network (SAWUN)
DONORS’ LENDING AND SUPPORT FOR IRRIGATION & DRAINAGE PROJECTS
World Bank
Ø Second Punjab Irrigation Sector Development Policy Loan for Pakistan Ø World Bank Supports Inland Waters Project in Croatia Ø Second National Water Development Project for Malawi Ø World Bank Supports Agricultural Reforms in FYR Macedonia Ø Urban and Water Development Support Project for Cameroon Ø World Bank Supports Water Supply and Sanitation Project in Azerbaijan
Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Ø ADB Supporting Public Sector Reforms in Pakistan's Balochistan Province Ø ADB provides US $ 13.5 million for Water Supply in Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka Ø Water Supply and Sanitation in Small Towns in the Central Region of Vietnam to be Improved by ADB Loan
African Development Bank (AfDB)
Ø African Development Bank provides 1.3 billion francs to improve integrated management of water resources in the Congo Basin Upcoming Regional and International Meets and Events
Ø 9th Cannes Water Symposium: Water and City 25-29 June 2007 Cannes, France Ø 36th Annual Conference ‘WATER 2007’ 26 June 2007 Tara, Serbia Ø 32nd Congress of IAHR ‘Harmonizing the Demands of Art and Nature in Hydraulics’ 01-06 July 2007 Venice, Italy Ø 4th Workshop and Short Intensive Course - Wetland Water 2-8 July 2007 Biebrza National Park, Poland Ø 6th Inter-American Dialogue on Water Management 12-17 August 2007 Guatemala City, Guatemala Ø World Water Week in Stockholm 2007 ‘Progress and Prospects on Water – Striving for Sustainability in a Changing World’ 12-18 August 2007 Stockholm, Sweden Ø 2nd IASTED International Conference on Water Resources Management (WRM 2007) 20-22 August 2007 Honolulu, Hawaii, USA Ø International Conference on Sustainable Development and Management of Water Resources in Palestine 25-28 August 2007 Amman, Jordan Ø Third International Conference on Climate and Water 3-6 September 2007 Helsinki, Finland Ø International Workshop on ‘Biogeochemical Processes in Groundwater Systems’ 10-11 September 2007 Munich, Germany Ø 14th German Dam Symposium / 5th ICOLD European Club Dam Symposium 17-19 September 2007 Freising, Bavaria, Germany Ø European Water & Wastewater Management Conference 24-26 September 2007 St James' Park, Newcastle, UK Ø 3rd International Yellow River Forum on Sustainable Water Resources Management and Delta Ecosystem Maintenance 16-19 October 2007 Dongying City, Shandong Province, China Ø HELP - Local Solutions to Global Water Problems : Lessons from the South 4-9 November 2007 Pretoria, South Africa Ø MELIA 1st Workshop: “Water Culture and Water Conflict in the Mediterranean Area” 22-26 November 2007 Tunisia Ø 33rd WEDC International Conference “Access to Sanitation and Safe Water: Global Partnerships and Local Actions” 7-11 April 2008 Accra, Ghana Ø Water Down Under 2008 15-18 April 2008 Adelaide, Australia
NEW PUBLICATIONS
Ø Doing Dams Right Ø Decision Support Systems for Large Dam Planning and Operation in Africa
FELLOWSHIP AND FUNDING OPPERTUNITIESØ DELTA Scholarships Ø Erasmus Mundus Scholarship Program Ø Ford Foundation International Fellowships Programme
CAPACITY BUILDING AND TRAININGS
Ø Applied Groundwater Modelling 18 June-06 July 2007 UNESCO-IHE, DELFT, The Netherlands Ø International Training Course on Qanats - A Multidisciplinary Approach to Integrating Traditional Knowledge with Modern Development 1- 4 July 2007 Yazd, Iran Ø Watershed and River Basin Management 9-27 July 2007 DELFT, The Netherlands Ø Public Private Partnerships in the Water Sector 9-27 July 2007 DELFT, The Netherlands Ø Water Quality Control in Water Supply 01-12 October DELFT, The Netherlands
DETAILS
NEWS
INPIM’s Third International Capacity Building Program on Participatory Irrigation Management, 21 – 30 October 2007, Izmir, Turkey
Program Description The Third International Capacity Building Program (ICBP) on Participatory Irrigation Management will be held in Izmir, Turky from 21 – 30 October 2007. The ICBP is being organized by the International Network on Participatory Irrigation Management (INPIM) in collaboration with INPIM Turkey Chapter and State Hydraulic Works, Turkey (DSI). The 10-day course will be held at the DSI’s Gumulder Training Centre, located in South of Izmir, 40 km from Izmir Airport. The course is aimed at faculty of training institutes or consultants, WUA Managers, Policy makers, System managers, and NGOs or Government/Irrigation Agency staff and those who are engaged in WUA capacity-building and implementing PIM programs in their countries. The language of the course will be English. The purpose of the course is to improve the effectiveness and sustainability of WUAs, and at the policy level to support and strengthen the implementation of national PIM programs. Besides offering the opportunity to review state-of-the-art thinking on irrigation reforms, this international CBP offers the opportunity for networking with irrigation professionals from around the world. The program includes 2 and a half day of field visits to 4 WUAs and interactions with WUA managers, farmers, stakeholders and staff of the WUAs in Turkey.
Objectives 1. To learn from international experience where PIM is being promoted 2. Focus substantively on the different dimensions of water users associations 3. Capacity building for the sustainability of water users associations 4. Networking among participants; learning from the experience of Turkey and learning from each other through country experiences
Language The course materials will be in English, and most of the formal presentations will also be in English. Translation will be provided from Turkish to English where required.
Course Venue The programme will be held at DSI’s Gumulder Training Centre in the beautiful town of Gumulder, located in the South of Izmir, 40 Km from Izmir Airport. Gumulder is a small town with the population of 8700, located on the Agean Sea Coast. The town is close to many famous historical places. The training centre is equipped with all facilities and has excellent accommodation arrangement for the participants.
Admission Requirements The course will be limited to 50 participants who would fall under three main categories: (1) managers of water user organizations, (2) senior government agency staff responsible for implementing PIM, and (3) faculty and staff of irrigation management training institutes or NGOs who would develop their own PIM training programs in their countries. Preference will be given to country teams of 3 persons representing a mix of both categories and who have strong practical and professional experience.
Registration Fee, Payment, and Travel INPIM offers a pre-arranged package including all course registration, meals, lodging, local transportation, and field visits. The fee amount will be announced in the upcoming CBP announcement next week. Participants shall be responsible for their travel to Izmir and back to their countries. Participants will be issued a letter of invitation addressed to the Embassy of Turkey in their respective countries. As issuance of visa usually takes time, you are requested to ensure that you process for your visa well in advance to avoid last minute disappointments. Participants wishing to arrive before, or stay after, the above mentioned dates and times should arrange for accommodations at their own expense. Payment of the program fee can be made through a bank/wire transfer directly to INPIM's bank account. The information required to make a wire transfer will be made available upon request by email to ihussain@inpim.org or znaseer@inpim.org. Participants will be registered through a two step process of registration as explained below: 1. Pre-registration – Participants are requested to complete the pre-registration by providing basic information in the Table (given below) to express their interest in participating in the program. Information for pre-registration
Note: Payment of fee can be made at pre-registration stage or at final registration stage as explained below. Early registration and payment of fee offers some financial benefits to the participants. 2. Final registration and payment of fee – upon receipt and processing of the pre-registration forms, final registration forms will be sent to the pre-registered participants as per the following schedule and benefits: Final Registration and full fee payment by 15 August 2007, 5 percent discount Final Registration and full fee payment by 30 August 2007, 2 percent discount Final Registration and full fee payment by 15 September 2007, No discount Final Registration and full fee payment by 30 September 2007, 5 percent late registration charge Final Registration and full fee payment by 15 October 2007, 20 percent late registration charge
For further Information, please contact:
Leveraging Water Resources to Meet African Needs
Members of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) of the African Water Facility (AWF) representing the five sub-regions of the continent concluded a review of the activities of the Facility in Brazzaville, Congo, emphasizing the compelling need to take action to improve access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation as well as address the wider challenges of integrated water resources management across the continent.
The other areas of focus include strengthening the financial base of the facility, improving its knowledge base, its leadership role and action plans; ensuring balance in types of interventions, balance between regions, countries and beneficiaries as well as balance at the project level; refining approaches and project selection criteria; leveraging AWF resources through co-financing, private sector and other funding initiatives; strengthening partnerships and working relationships; the organizational framework and human resources; refining planning and budgeting; updating the results-based management system as well as the revision process and timeline.
Ø West Africa: Senegal, Niger, Volta, Ø Central Africa: Lake Chad, Congo Ø East Africa: Nile Ø Southern Africa: Zambezi, Okavango, Orange/Senqu Ø The Lullemeden Aquifer, Ø Nubian Sandstone aquifer Ø Northern Sahara Aquifer System.
He indicated that 2006 operations focused on support for national and trans-boundary IWRM implementation, project and programme preparation, diagnosis of information and knowledge, short-term and execution studies and small scale investment through synergies with the Bank Group’s interventions and collaboration with other partners. The focal areas include: water supply and sanitation, agriculture, environment as well as multi-purpose water use.
Investing in Water Governance—Luxury or Priority?
Since the adoption of its Water for All policy in 2001, ADB’s message to its clients and partners in the Asia-Pacific region has been that the water crisis is essentially a crisis of water governance. The policy itself is oriented towards improving the governance of water services and of integrated water resources management in river basins, with a national focus on water reforms to make this happen. Have ADB’s investments made a dent in the tremendous need for water governance in the Asia-Pacific region?
Water Governance Challenge
An independent panel that reviewed the implementation of the policy in 2005 reported that the glass was both half full and half empty. The panel supported the policy and urged ADB to increase its water investments significantly and do better in implementation, including helping clients to improve water governance.
As the region reviews its progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, government leaders are increasingly recognizing the need to increase water investments, which are key to alleviating poverty, improving livelihoods, and reducing vulnerability to disasters that can push communities back into poverty.
Higher investments are indeed needed on a priority basis for extending and rehabilitating infrastructure to deliver water services and to manage water resources in river basins. ADB has announced a doubling of its own water investments under the Water Financing Program 2006-2010. Clients and partners are being encouraged to join the program and work together in achieving its targeted outcomes.
The challenge lies in ensuring that the renewed commitment to infrastructure financing is supported by work to improve water governance. Are water reform initiatives and capacity development now receiving higher priority from finance ministers, or are they still by and large treated as a luxury to be paid for from grant or concessional funds? The real-life answer is that decision makers like to see proof of results on the ground before agreeing to increase budgets for water governance.
Innovative Governance Projects
This is where ADB’s program of Pilot and Demonstration Activities (PDA) has been helping out. The program started in 2002 with a pragmatic view of the opportunities and constraints for ADB’s clients to pursue innovative investments and reforms. Small grants are provided, normally in the amount of $50,000 per project, and this ensures a fast turnaround of proposals and rapid achievement of results, which should be replicable in the country or region. Interestingly, many of the PDAs are focusing on innovations in water governance.
Three PDAs that were completed recently have demonstrated both the cost-effectiveness of the program and a strong interest by ADB’s clients in water governance. In Thailand, the department of water resources demonstrated how stakeholder awareness and participation are key in getting a new river basin organization to work. In Viet Nam, the people’s committee of Quang Nam province piloted the formation of a river basin organization to ensure that planned hydropower developments in the basin can be pursued in a framework of integrated water resources management. And in Nantai Island in the rapidly-expanding Fuzhou City in the People’s Republic of China, city managers and local community leaders joined hands to clean up the polluted waterways. In each case, the PDA champions demonstrated three important achievements: decentralizing water management, changing mindsets, and achieving results.
Decentralizing Water Management In Thailand’s Bang Pakong river basin, the central government agency gave more decision space to the newly-established river basin committee and supported it in starting a process of basin dialogue with stakeholders in four provinces, aiming to reduce the perceived “gap between government and the people.” The dialogue helped to create a better atmosphere between the river basin committee and local stakeholders, and clarified the mandate of the river basin committee.
In Viet Nam’s Vu Gia-Thu Bon river basin, the Quang Nam people’s committee pioneered the formation of a river basin committee for the province and neighboring Da Nang city. And in Fuzhou city’s Nantai Island community, local village committees were chosen to organize teams for solid waste collection, hygiene education, and public awareness for environmental improvement.
Changing Mindsets The PDA champions also demonstrated that changing mindsets is both necessary and possible. The formation of the river basin committee in Quang Nam province in Viet Nam became a source of empowerment for the provincial leadership in adopting integrated water resources management as they involved both government agencies as well as local community representatives.
In Thailand’s Bang Pakong river basin committee, government members gave their support to the chair of the committee, a private entrepreneur with a deep interest in and commitment to sustainable development in the basin. The committee is the only one among 29 country-wide with a chair from the private sector. In Nantai Island, the city government skillfully mobilized local community leaders to turn the general public’s dissatisfaction with water and solid waste pollution into committed local action to improve the situation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
