The Virtual Workshop on legal frameworks for transboundary water cooperation was especially tailored to assist countries and/or other relevant stakeholders in the design and drafting of agreements or other arrangements.
With a view to supporting the preparation of a checklist on developing legal frameworks for transboundary water cooperation, the workshop took stock of existing experience worldwide with drafting and design, it explored common challenges and gathered lessons learned. The programme was structured around some key aspects related to the drafting of legal frameworks, namely:
(1) Preliminary considerations and general provisions of an agreement or arrangement;
(2) Substantive content and procedural features, including general obligations and principles; key water management, protection, sectoral and intersectoral issues covered; and procedural provisions supporting an effective cooperation.
(3) Implementation, institutional framework and dispute settlement.
The Virtual Workshop further included a special thematic session on addressing health issues in transboundary water cooperation, particularly in light of the current outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Virtual Workshop on designing legal frameworks for transboundary water cooperation
28 - 29 July 2020
Salle XVII, Palais des Nations Geneva Switzerland
Documents and Presentations
| Documents and Presentations | ENG | FRE | RUS | SPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Programme | ||||
| Draft annotated outline for the Checklist on the Development of Legal Frameworks for Transboundary Water Cooperation | ||||
| Day 1 | ||||
| Draft checklist on the development of legal frameworks for transboundary waters Mr. Komlan Sangbana, UNECE Secretariat and Ms. Valentina Paderi, Consultant |
||||
| Session 1 (original audio) | audio | audio | audio | audio |
| The different designs of legal frameworks for transboundary waters in international water law practice Mr. Alistair Rieu-Clarke, Professor of Law, Northumbria University |
||||
| Defining Parties to the agreement or other arrangement, and relation with Third Parties Ms. Mara Tignino, Lead Legal Specialist, Platform for International Water Law, Geneva Water Hub |
||||
| Definition of terms, scope: how to address ambiguities? Mr. Sylvester Matemu, Expert on Transboundary Waters |
||||
| Session 2 (original audio) | audio | audio | audio | audio |
| Designing substantive and procedural features of an agreement or other arrangement: general considerations Ms. Christina Leb, Senior Counsel, The World Bank |
||||
| Example of substantive and procedural features within an agreement on groundwater in Latin America: the case of the Guarani Aquifer Mr. Alberto Manganelli, Executive Director of the Regional Centre for Groundwater Management in Latin America and the Caribbean |
||||
| Example of substantive and procedural features within agreements in the European region Mr. Timo Jokelainen, President of the Commissions on transboundary rivers/waters between Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden |
||||
| Day 2 | ||||
| Session 3 (original audio) | audio | audio | audio | audio |
| Designing substantive and procedural features of an agreement or other arrangement: general considerations Ms. Zaki Schubber, Lecturer, IHE Delft Institute for Water Education (Netherlands) |
||||
| Example of substantive and procedural features: the case of the Agreement for the Establishment of the Orange-Senqu Commission, including establishment of a multi-country cooperation mechanism for the Stampriet Aquifer Mr. Lenka Thamae, Executive Secretary, Orange-Senqu Commission (ORASECOM) |
||||
| Example of substantive and procedural features within an agreement on freshwater in Asia: the case of the Mekong Basin Mr. Ly Thim, Chief River Basin Planner, Mekong River Commission Secretariat |
||||
| Water and health and links with the COVID-19 pandemic – Introducing the UNECE-WHO Regional Office for Europe Protocol on Water and Health Mr. Alisher Mamadzhanov, UNECE Secretariat |
||||
| Access to safe water and international health cooperation in transboundary basins: the case of the Senegal River Basin Mr. Fawzi Bedredine, Regional Programme Coordinator, Organisation pour la mise en valeur du fleuve Sénégal (OMVS) |
||||
| Session 4 (original audio) | audio | audio | audio | audio |
| What type of legal provisions contribute to the establishment of effective institutional frameworks, examples from West and Central Africa Mr. Christophe Brachet, Deputy Secretary General, International Network of Basin Organizations (INBO) |
||||
| Addressing dispute settlement within legal frameworks for transboundary waters and the role of Third Parties in supporting implementation Ms. Dinara Ziganshina, Deputy Director of the Scientific Information Centre of Interstate Commission for Water Coordination in Central Asia, Vice-chair of the Water Convention Implementation Committee |
||||
| The financing structure of the International Meuse Commission Mr. Jean Noel Pansera, Secretary General, International Meuse Commission |
||||
| Exploring new financing mechanisms to implement joint investments in the Gambia River Basin Development Organization Mr. Ababakar Ndao, Secretary General, Organisation de Mise en Valeur du Fleuve Gambia (OMVG) |