The first meeting of the Expert Group on Transboundary Assessment was held on 9-10 May 2017 in room VIII of the Palais des Nations, Geneva.

The assessment of water resources is of fundamental importance as it forms the basis for effective policies and management measures. This is particularly important in transboundary basins where there is a need for a common basis for decision-making, which requires harmonized and comparable assessment methods.

To support such efforts at the basin level, in 2003, the Parties to the Water Convention decided to regularly carry out assessments of the status of transboundary waters in the region of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Two such reports were already produced through extensive intergovernmental processes: in 2007 and in 2011 involving both Parties and non-Parties to the Convention.

The sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties (Rome, 2012) of the Water Convention concluded that a new comprehensive assessment of transboundary waters could be timely some 8 to 10 years from the Second Assessment. Considering the opening of the Water Convention to all UN Member States, the Third Assessment would not only focus on the pan-European region, and as in previous exercises involve both Parties and non-Parties to the Water Convention.

The Expert Group meeting explored the possible geographic and thematic scope, structure, possible information sources as well as the process of preparation for a Third Assessment of Transboundary Waters, in order to best serve countries’ and regions’ needs. It also helped identify gaps from and synergies with other relevant monitoring and assessment initiatives. The results of the expert group meeting will be submitted for consideration by the Working Group on Integrated Water Resources Management at its 12th meeting (Geneva, 5-6 July 2017).

The working language was English.

The meeting was by invitation only.