In this 11th issue of the Water Convention Newsletter, enjoy news from activities carried out under the Water Convention and its Protocol on Water and Health from 1 August to 31 October 2020.

More than 200 experts representing governmental authorities from 78 countries, joint bodies, non-governmental and international organizations, as well as academia reviewed progress in transboundary water cooperation and in implementing the programme of work of the Water Convention during the 15^th meeting of the Working Group on Integrated Water Resources Management (30 September-2 October). Participants warmly welcomed Ghana as the 44^th Party to the Convention. More information on the meeting can be found here and in the related article here.

How can the Water Convention prevent conflicts and wars over transboundary waters? Why is the Convention relevant for countries that were not involved in the negotiations? Does the Convention promote or hinder economic development? Read the replies to these and many other questions in our new publication FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON THE 1992 WATER CONVENTION (available in English and Russian, with other language versions to follow).

The publication is based on real questions and requests for clarification received by the Convention secretariat from countries in the accession process in the period 2013–2020. The Road map to facilitate accession processes included in the publication outlines the good practices and the lessons learned from completed accession processes to the Convention. It will be launched on 17 November in English.

The 11^th meeting of the Implementation Committee under the Water Convention was held from 31 August to 2 September 2020 in a hybrid format.

The Committee discussed the advisory procedure initiated in response to the request from Montenegro related to that country’s concerns about the possible transboundary impact of the planned construction of additional small hydropower plants on the Cijevna/Cem River in Albania.

Following consultations with the two countries, the Committee decided to stay in contact with the countries to facilitate the exchange of information related to the Cijevna/Cem River basin. It will also assist the countries in setting up a joint monitoring and assessment framework for surface waters, groundwaters and ecosystems in the basin.

The recently launched Policy brief summary and Policy report “Realising the benefits of transboundary water cooperation in the Cubango-Okavango River Basin” highlight the broad range of economic, social, environmental, as well as peace and security benefits generated by transboundary water cooperation in the Cubango-Okavango River Basin (CORB). Angola, Botswana and Namibia have been cooperating in the knowledge and management of the CORB under the framework of OKACOM for over 20 years. With a view to further enhance cooperation, OKACOM carried out a participative process to assess its benefits, with support of UNECE and partners, building upon the guidance developed under the Water Convention. This report was launched  during a webinar on 28 October. More information on related activities under the Convention can be find here.

The 25th World Water Week At Home was organized from 24 to 28 August 2020 virtually with the theme “Water and Climate Change: Accelerating Action” mainly focusing on the importance of interlinkages between water and climate change under the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemics. The secretariat of the Water Convention organized and contributed to several sessions including How to finance climate change adaptation in transboundary basins, Breaking Silos - Across Sectors and Boundaries and No Amazonia, no water: climate change in the rainforest. The sessions stressed the importance of transboundary cooperation across sectors as well as the need for capacity building in developing bankable projects proposals to adapt to climate change. More information is available here.

The 11^th meeting of the Task Force on Water and Climate was held on 2 October 2020 and mainly consisted of a thematic session on mainstreaming transboundary aspects of water management into climate-related documents. This session was organised in partnership with Alliance for Global Water Adaptation (AGWA), Adaptation Without Borders (AWB), Global Water Partership (GWP), International Network of Basin Organizations (INBO), Stockolm International Water management Institute (SIWI),

UNDP, UNFCCC and Water Governance Facility (WGF). The Task Force also discussed further activities on climate change adaptation in transboundary basins for the next Programme of Work under the Water Convention for 2022-2024. The Task Force encouraged countries to mainstream transboundary aspects of water management into their national climate-related documents such as, for example, Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans, as well as to apply the findings of the dedicated background paper into their work.

On 22-23 October 2020, the Nexus Task Force under the Water Convention (involving Parties and non-Parties) convened to discuss the experience of countries and basins around the world in designing and implementing cross-sectoral solutions and investments in response to the most common issues affecting transboundary basins. Representatives from governments, regional commissions and basin organizations, academia and financing institutions, examined the key factors of success and barriers to cross-sectoral action in the different regions, including in particular those related to financing. The basis was provided by a global survey undertaken in cooperation with IUCN. The need for integrated planning and investments benefitting multiple sectors will become even more pressing in the post-COVID recovery. The Task Force also discussed possible future activities in the areas of the nexus and water allocation. More information on the meeting can be found here and all nexus activities under the Convention here.

By October 2020, out of the 153 countries sharing water resources, 126 countries have submitted their national report on SDG indicator 6.5.2 measuring transboundary water cooperation, namely more than two thirds. This high response rate testifies the importance of transboundary water cooperation. The co-custodians, UNECE and UNESCO, thank all countries that participated in the 2nd reporting exercise and invite all others to do so by 20 November. The co-custodians are reviewing the data provided by countries in view of their subsequent input to the SDG reports and databases, such as the UN Statistical Commission, Secretary-General’s report on the SDGs or the 2nd Progress report on SDG indicator 6.5.2, allowing to track progress towards SDG Target 6.5.

The Stakeholder Meeting on 21 October 2020 informed key actors engaged in the management of water resources of Georgia about the outcomes of the pilot SEA project. The event brought together over 35 representatives of relevant governmental institutions, international and donor organizations, NGOs, experts and other stakeholders. SEA of the Alazani-Iori RBMP is carried out with assistance of UNECE in the frame of the EUWI+ project.

Belarus recognised the importance of SEA for the comprehensive integration of environmental and health concerns into the legislative process and adopted relevant national procedures. The SEA process for the draft Water Strategy 2030, facilitated by UNECE under the EUWI+ project, is being implemented according to international requirements (e.g. Protocol on SEA to the Espoo Convention), including comprehensive public consultation, and will result in improvements of the draft Water Strategy.

• 17 November 2020: Launch of the publication “Frequently asked questions on the 1992 Water Convention” (in English-11:00-12:30), register here.
• 18 November 2020: SEA capacity building for River Basin Management Plans in Georgia: https://euwipluseast.eu/
• 19 November 2020: EUWI+ Result sharing event in the Republic of Moldova: https://euwipluseast.eu/
• 7-8 December 2020, Virtual/hybrid: 12^th meeting of the Implementation Committee
• 16–17 December 2020, Virtual: Global workshop on financing transboundary water cooperation and basin development

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