Water and Development Information for Arid Lands A

Water and Development Information for Arid Lands A Global Network (G-WADI) By: Abdin Salih Former Director & Representative UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office

Challenges 1. 1 billion people lacks access to safe water supplies Goal: reduce with 50% by Year 2015 2. 4 billion people lacks access to improved sanitation Goal: reduce with 50% by Year 2015

Water consumption at the global level: Agriculture 70% Industry 22% Domestic 8%

“Let me ask you some fundamental questions. Do we have the full capacity of trained professionals and policy makers needed to take on the international water agenda and deliver on the ambitious targets set for 2015? Are our institutions ready to cope with the job to be done? Do we have a citizenry sufficiently aware of the looming water crisis, or the linkages between water, poverty, health, economic development and, indeed, survival? Do people in water-rich countries understand that the fate of those in water-poor countries is entwined with their own? ” Keynote Address delivered by Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO at the UNESCO meeting on strategies, actions, and coalitions in water education and capacity-building, Delft, The Netherlands, 17 July 2003.

l UNESCO l IHP Programme l l l Existing Institutes/Centers Within and Beyond IHP-VII Examples From The Arab Region

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) International Hydrological Programme (IHP)

IHP VII (2008 -2013) Water Dependences: Systems Under Stress and Societal Responses Theme 1: Global changes, Watersheds and Aquifer Systems Theme 2: Governance, Socio-Economics Theme 3: Ecohydrology and Environmental Sustainability Theme 4: Water Quality, Human Health and Food Security Theme 5: Water Education

Within and Beyond IHP-VII l l l l Groundwater Initiatives FRIEND HELP WWAP PCCP / WCF Conflict Mediation G-WADI

Water And Development Information for arid lands (G-WADI) A Global Network

Water and Development Information for arid lands (G-WADI) a global network to bring together: • Regional networks • Regional centers • International centers of excellence Launch workshop April 2003

Network Objectives The strategic Objective of the G-WADI network is to strengthen the global capacity to manage the water resources of arid and semi-arid areas.

Specific G-WADI Objectives l l l l Improved understanding of the special characteristics of hydrological systems; The capacity building of individuals and institutions; The broad dissemination of understanding of water in arid zones to the user community and the public, especially as a basis for improved management; The exchange of experience; The sharing of data; Raising awareness; The promotion of integrated basin management.

G-WADI Activities l l l l l Development of G-WADI website Translation of the website to various languages Modeling Project and Workshops Hydro-Climatic Forecasting Project Tracers’ Initiative G-WADI Brochure Global Workshops Steering Committee Meetings Technical activities

Activities held within 2004 -7 l Launching the G-WADI website (www. g-wadi. org) International G-WADI Modeling Workshop; Roorkee 28 Feb~5 Mar 2005 l Workshop on Applicability of Climate Research and Information for Water Resource Management in Semi-Arid and Arid Regions; Cairo 18~21 April 2005 l Oxford Workshop on Isotopic and Chemical Tracers; 6~9 July 2005 l International Scientific Conference on the Future of Drylands; 19~21 June 2006, Tunisia l UNESCO G-WADI Meeting on Water Harvesting; 20~22 November 2006 Aleppo, Syria l A Global G-WADI Groundwater Modeling activity in China on June 2007 International Workshop on Techniques to Augment Water Resource Supply in Area of Water Scarcity; December 17 -18, 2007 l

Network Membership and Linkages Coordinating Centre IHP Secretariat PUBLIC NON SCIENTIFIC USERS

Examples of Existing Institutes / Centres l UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education (Delft, The Netherlands) l RCUWM - Regional Center on Urban Water Management (Tehran, I. R. of Iran) l Regional Center for Training and Water Studies of Arid and Semiarid Zones (Cairo, Egypt) CATHALAC - Center for the Humid Tropics of LAC (Panama City, Panama) Humid Tropics Hydrology Center for SE Asia and the Pacific (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) IRTCUD - International Research and Training Center on Urban Drainage (Belgrade, Serbia & Montenegro) IRTCES - International Research and Training Center on Erosion and Sedimentation (Beijing, China) IGRAC - International Groundwater Resources Assessment Center (Utrecht, The Netherlands) CAZALAC - Water Center for Arid and Semiarid Regions of LAC (La Serena, Chile) International Center on Qanats and Historic Hydraulic Structures International Center of Ecohydrology, Indonesia International Center for Urban Water management, Columbia International Center on Transboundary Aquifers, Libya l l l l l

Regional G-WADI for Asia l Regional initiative started between UNESCO Beijing, Tehran, New Delhi and National Institute of Hydrology (NIH), India l 11 countries are involved in this process coordinated by NIH l Global meeting for Arid zone modeling was held during March 2005, where the regional network was formally launched The secretariat was recently moved to Lanzhou, China l

Asian G-WADI Network Established at Roorkee, India by the National Institute of Hydrology l l l Afghanistan China India Iran Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Mongolia Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan

Activities held by the Asian G-WADI l l l l l Regional Workshop on Management of Aquifer Recharge and Water Harvesting, Yazd, Iran, 27 Nov~ 1 Dec 2004 Regional Workshop on Training of Trainers on Management of Artificial Recharge (MAR) and Rainwater Harvesting; Lahore, Pakistan 25 Apr. ~ 2 May 2005 Coordination Meeting of the Asian G-WADI Network; Roorkee, India, 4~6 March 2006 Presenting Mashhad G-WADI Pilot Site (located in Iran) at the 4 th World Water Forum; March 2006 Mexico Regional To. T Workshop on Application of New Models and Techniques in Groundwater Management; Karaj, Iran 29 July ~ 1 August 2006 Asian Pilot G-WADI Basins established: 2 in Iran (Mashhad and Taleghan/Hashtgerd Basins) 2 in India 1 in China in the process of establishment: 1 in Pakistan, 1 in Kyrgyzstan, 1 in Tajikistan, 1 in India Support to Taleghan Pilot Basin by sending 168 water samples to PINSTECH for isotope analysis A Regional G-WADI Workshop on New Methods of Efficient Water Resources Management has been proposed to be held in Ashgabat/Turkmenistan in 2007 Global G-WADI Groundwater Modeling activity in China on June 2007

The challenge we all have How to put water in the minds of people?