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MIO-ECSDE was highlighted as an exemplary regional network for its successful experiences in transboundary water dialogues at the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention of the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (UNECE Water Convention), which took place in Rome, Italy on 28-30 November 2012. More than 330 high level participants attended the session.
On the first day, Professor Michael Scoullos, Chairman of MIO-ECSDE and GWP-Med, addressed the Signatories to the Water Convention briefing them on the outcomes of the International Roundtable on Transboundary Water Resources Management in the Southern Mediterranean which took place directly before, on 26-27 November 2012, and which was co-organised by UNECE, UfM, GWP-Med, GEF-IW:LEARN, MED EUWI and hosted by the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea.
In his intervention Prof. Scoullos underlined the genuine interest of the participants to share experiences and upgrade the role, contribution and honest involvement of the non-state stakeholders, NGOs and Civil Society at large in Transboundary Water Resources dialogues. Prof. Scoullos stated that “The successful experiences of regional networks, such as MedWet and MIO-ECSDE, in transboundary dialogues has to be harnessed in full for the benefit of the Southern countries as well, taking into account the conditions and developments in the riparian countries”. He went on to specify the need to further implicate individual Parliamentarians in the promotion of transboundary dialogues through the utilization of COMPSUD (Circle of Mediterranean Parliamentarians for Sustainable Development), a flexible network of Mediterranean Parliamentarians focusing on issues of Sustainable Development of the region.
Furthermore, at another session of the meeting (30 November 2012) MIO-ECSDE took the opportunity to reconfirm the organizations’s commitment to continue and strengthen its fruitful collaboration with UNECE for the promotion of the Convention and the fulfillment of its related tasks.
On the 27th of November at the International Roundatble, MIO-ECSDE, represented by Programme Officer Thomais Vlachogianni, shared its experiences and lessons-learned on the issue of NGO involvement in transboundary water resources management during a session examining stakeholder engagement in facilitating transboundary cooperation and ways to strengthen their capacity. After a brief overview of the benefits and challenges related to NGO involvement in transboundary water resources management in the Mediterranean, Ms. Vlachogianni focused on two case studies: MIO-ECSDE’s role in the involvement of NGOs in the MedPartnership project and the Drin River Dialogue process. Both case studies illustrated the successful practices and experiences gained in the effort to create a truly enabling environment for cooperation.
For more information find below the relevant presentation and the agenda of the meeting.
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