Ohrid, FYR Macedonia, 12-14 October 2006

Organized jointly by GWP-Med and the Lake Ohrid Watershed Committee, with the support of GEF IW:LEARN Activity D2, the International Roundtable will address issues of integrated management of lake basins and the linkages to connected river basin, groundwater and coastal management. The overall aim is the promotion of cooperation for the management of the transboundary water bodies of the South Western Balkan Peninsula region.

For further information on the event, please visit: www.watersee.net

The International Roundtable on Protection and Sustainable Use of Transboundary Waters in Southeastern Europe was held on the 15th and 16th of December 2011 in Zagreb, Croatia.

Continuing a process launched in 2006, GWP Mediterranean organised four regional workshops during 2011 aimed at enriching knowledge, enhancing experience-sharing and strengthening capacity building on issues relating to transboundary water resources management in south-eastern Europe.

Focusing on six water-scarce islands in the Cyclades, Greece, one grey water system and 11 rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems were installed or repaired. The total installed capacity reached about 2.2 million litres with an estimated annual water yield of 4.42 million litres, benefiting 8,500 permanent inhabitants in small and isolated communities.

With a focus on the Buna/Bojana transboundary river (shared between Albania and Montenegro), a methodology is being developed that effectively links IWRM and ICZM (integrated coastal zone management). This work includes developing a joint IWRM/ICZM generic planning framework and working towards the launch, in 2012, of the joint IWRM/ICZM Plan for this specific transboundary basin.

To involve the private sector more in developing water infrastructure, GWP Mediterranean continued with national assessments and multi-stakeholder dialogues. These were run within the framework of MED EUWI and the GEF MedPartnership, and in close collaboration with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Following detailed assessment and a structured stakeholders' consultation at national and regional levels, the five Drin River riparian states signed a Memorandum of Understanding on a shared strategic vision for the benefit of about two million people who rely on the basin for drinking water, agriculture, fisheries, industry, and hydropower.

A joint position paper from GWP West Africa and GWP Mediterreanean, in view of Rio+20 in 2012.

A successful Capacity Building Workshop on “Flood Management in a Transboundary Context” was organized on the 13th and 14th of December in Zagreb, Croatia, under the Petersberg Phase II / Athens Declaration Process by the Global Water Partnership- Mediterranean (GWP-Med) with the support of the German Ministry of Environment and GEF IWLEARN.

The Maltese Islands have limited freshwater resources and depend heavily on desalination. Therefore there is an evident need to mobilise non conventional Water Resources (NCWR) in order to secure water availability and facilitate sustainable development.