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Iraq grapples with severe water challenges exacerbated by climate change, population growth, upstream dam construction, and decades of conflict and instability. The Euphrates and Tigris rivers, vital lifelines for the region’s agriculture, ecosystems, and communities, face increasing threats from…
The Water Convention has facilitated the First round of Technical & Planning Negotiations of the Draft ‘Agreement on the Establishment of the Luapula River and Lake Mweru Authority between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia on 18 and 19 April, concerning the transboundary Lake…
On 29 February 2024 Zambia declared a National Crisis and Emergency regarding a drought gripping the country and which has decimated food and energy supply. Other Southern African countries have declared similar National Emergencies due to severe drought, including Zimbabwe in April. Severe…
Preventing accidental water pollution remains a key challenge for many countries within and beyond the UNECE region. Approximately 60% of the world’s freshwater flows occur in transboundary river basins where 40% of the world’s population live. Countries rely increasingly on transboundary water…
Much of Chad's water resources are shared, notably the Lake Chad basin and its many tributaries and distributaries (shared with Cameroon, Central African Republic, Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan and Algeria), the Niger River basin (shared with Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea,…
Guaranteeing safe access to drinking water and sanitation remains a challenge in the pan-European region, with 16 million people still lacking access to basic drinking water services and over 29 million people not having access to basic sanitation, including hundreds of thousands who have to…
Around 3.6 billion people live in contexts that are highly vulnerable to climate change and many of them are in transboundary basins. Droughts do not recognize borders, pose transboundary risks, and require cooperation to address them. The 6th IPCC assessment (2022) and the IPCC synthesis (2023)…
Sierra Leone shares four major rivers with the neighbouring countries of Guinea and Liberia, including the Great Scarcies, Little Scarcies and Moa shared with Guinea, and Mano River shared with Liberia. All provide crucial freshwater that sustains ecosystems, livelihoods and the well-being of…
Burkina Faso is one of the Sahelian countries hardest hit by the effects of climate change, experiencing torrential rains and floods, as well as periods of insufficient rainfall.
To help address these challenges, through adaptation, resilience and concerted, shared management of its water…
Originally introduced in policy and development discussions in 2011, the water-food-energy-ecosystem nexus approach has evolved into a pivotal framework for sustainable development and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Work on the water-energy-food-ecosystems nexus under the…
Cooperation and management of transboundary waters, which span over 45% of the world's surface and serve as vital resources for nearly half of the global population, face the imminent threat of underfunding. The last reporting exercise on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) indicator 6.5.2 (2020),…
In the pan-European region, citizens are feeling the impacts of climate change through extreme weather events. This undermines equitable access to water and sanitation as human rights, due to increasing water scarcity and increased burden of water diseases due to overflow of untreated sewerage…
Transboundary rivers, lakes, and aquifers play a vital role in supporting the livelihoods of billions of people worldwide. Roughly 60% of global freshwater flow is in shared basins. About 40% of the world’s population lives in shared basins. The development and management of transboundary water…
According to the 2023 Global Circularity Gap Report by the Circle Economy Foundation, transitioning to a circular economy will allow us to fulfil people's needs with only 70% of the materials we currently extract and use. The benefits of the circular economy are tremendous, as it not only addresses…
Almost all of Botswana’s territory sits within transboundary rivers basins. Although landlocked, Botswana is therefore a ‘water-linked’ country. The Cubango-Okavango, Limpopo, Orange-Senqu and Zambezi Rivers all provide crucial freshwater arteries that supply people and nature, including the…
An estimated 3.6 billion people face inadequate access to water at least a month per year – a figure expected to increase to more than 5 billion by 2050. According to WMO, over 50% of global catchment areas and reservoirs displayed deviations from normal conditions in 2022, of which the majority…
Decades of unsustainable consumption and production patterns have resulted in the exhaustion of finite resources and environmental degradation. As governments reassess scenarios, the circular economy model - where resources are reused, recycled, and repurposed to reduce waste - has become a pillar…
In the Drina River Basin, shared mainly by Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia, working together across borders and jointly addressing water and energy challenges is a key part of effective climate action and the green transition.
As part of the Sarajevo Energy and Climate Week (25-29…
Bringing together countries to share progress and experience on how to effectively manage their shared waters is a key characteristic of the Water Convention. Cooperation for the management of transboundary waters to promote sustainability, peace and security is the Convention’s mantra - especially…
Central Asian countries are actively working towards improving access to water and sanitation. Despite recent progress, Kazakhstan's aging infrastructure, lack of human resources and financial constraints still limit the access of rural population to improved water and sanitation services. In 2022…
For many people around the world, the work and achievements of the United Nations remain in the realms of grand summits of heads of state on pressing global issues, of diplomatic brokering of peace agreements, of urgent humanitarian interventions for people in the greatest need, and other high-…
Over two-thirds of Togo’s water resources are shared, notably through the Mono River basin (shared with Benin) and Volta River basin (shared with Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Mali), as well as aquifers in the coastal sedimentary basin (shared with Ghana, Benin and Nigeria).
In a…
On 8 June 2023 Namibia became the first Southern African country, and 8th country in Africa, to accede to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (UN Water Convention).
Namibia, which has a population of some 2.5 million people, shares…
Finland and the Republic of Namibia, both countries which are strong advocates for transboundary water cooperation in their respective regions and globally, have just embarked on a two-year pilot Twinning Initiative to exchange experiences, build capacity and strengthen bilateral cooperation on…
Guaranteeing safe access to drinking water and sanitation remains a challenge in the pan-European region, with 16 million people still lacking access to basic drinking water services and over 29 million people not having access to basic sanitation, including hundreds of thousands who have to…