“Water and Land” Capacity Development Workshop for Water and Environmental Journalists
The “Water and Land” Capacity Development Workshop for Water and Environmental Journalists, which will be held from 22 to 24 January in Cairo, Egypt, is being organized by the UN-Water Decade Programme on Capacity Development (UNW-DPC), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Arab Water Council (AWC).
The workshop's main objective is to create awareness among media professionals in Arab countries regarding the current situation of water resources management and land degradation in the region, and to seek active involvement of the media for creating public awareness and advocacy to promote sectoral reforms to support the Millennium Development Goals and the Convention to Combat Desertification. Visit the UNW-DPC web site for more details
UN resolution on the Law of Transboundary Aquifers
In December 2008, the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly adopted by consensus a resolution on the Law of Transboundary Aquifers. The General Assembly expressed its appreciation to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's International Hydrological Programmes (UNESCO-IHP) for its contribution to UN International Law Commission (UNILC) in the preparation of the articles on the law.
The text of the law's draft articles are included in Chapter 4, Shared Natural Resources of the International Law Commission's Report on the work of its sixtieth session. Visit the Report's web page
The World Map of Transboundary Aquifers published by the Worldwide Hydrological Mapping and Assessment Programme (WHYMAP) served as background for this preparation of the first set of international legal articles. Published in October 2008, the global groundwater map is a detailed map of transboundary aquifers that shows the delineations of aquifers shared by at least two countries. Visit the WHYMAP web site to view or download the global groundwater map
The International Year of Sanitation comes to a close
The International Year of Sanitation (IYS) is over. Now the important follow-up work begins. IYS organizers are preparing a summary of IYS events and outcomes for the next session of the United Nations General Assembly. If you or your organization has undertaken an initiative, the IYS team would like to hear about it. Projects and events will be featured on the IYS in Action section of the IYS web site. Visit the IYS web site
Although much was accomplished during the year, it's clear that much remains to be done. Data from a 2008 report prepared by the World Health Organization / United Nation's Children Fund Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation indicates that "only 62 per cent of the world’s population has access to improved sanitation – that is, uses a sanitation facility that ensures hygienic separation of human excreta from human contact." The report notes that "at the current rate, the world will miss the Millennium Development Goals sanitation target by over 700 million people. To meet the target, at least 173 million people on average per year will need to begin using improved sanitation facilities." For more information, view / download the 2008 JMP Report on Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation: Special Focus on Sanitation. English version (PDF 15.5 MB - large file) Spanish version (PDF 17.6 MB - large file)
The World Map of Transboundary Aquifers published by the Worldwide Hydrological Mapping and Assessment Programme (WHYMAP) served as background for this preparation of the first set of international legal articles. Published in October 2008, the global groundwater map is a detailed map of transboundary aquifers that shows the delineations of aquifers shared by at least two countries.
