Under Water and Climate Development Programme (WACDEP), Myanmar WACDEP activity title is Development of the National Water Policy and Water Law with Integrating Water Security and Climate Resilience Aspects into Investment Planning and Decision making Process. Its goal is to point out the integration of water security and climate resilience aspects to be included in the national water policy and water law. With aiming the goal of the activity, the works have been initiated with making two assessment studies, such as, Assessment of the National Water Policy of Myanmar (NWPM) and Assessment of the Current Situation of Water Security and Climate Resilience Aspects in Myanmar. After that identification of these aspects to be integrated in NWPM, how to implement the integration process by means of consultative meeting which will be held among multi-stakeholders from water sector. Finally selecting and prioritizing the action plans for integrating water security and climate resilience aspects into the NWPM.
Malaysian Water Partnership, in collaboration with the Department of Irrigation and Drainage Malaysia (DID), conducted the Stakeholder Forum for Incorporating Climate Resilience in the National Water Resources Policy Action Plans on the 27th and 28th of October 2014. This activity was a response to the launch of Malaysia’s National Water Resources Policy on 24 March 2012 which recognized climate change as an important issue to be addressed in the policy formulation. This forum was attended by 90 people from 40 institutions.
Water resources are sensitive to variation in climatic pattern. Climate change is likely to intensify extreme weather event including droughts, floods and tropical storms. It is a fact in Indonesia that sustainability of freshwater is already threatened by severe watershed degradation, pollution, and over-allocation. Furthermore climate change will aggravate these threats to a point of irreversibility if no counter measures.
Today, in celebration of the International Francophonie Day, the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Secretary-General of the Organisation international de la Francophonie (OIF), encourages francophone youth to get engaged and learn about a series of youth consultations on water and climate change that OIF has launched in preparation for the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21).
During the year, Vietnam Water Partnership reviewed the existing irrigation management status and plan as well as drafted a proposal for new irrigation management plan. Two key government institutions, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) of Vietnam, are fully supporting the implementation of the activities that are under WACDEP program. Vietnam Water Partnership also coordinated closely with National Focal Point of Vietnam to UNFCCC, which will utilize the results of this program into other program of climate change agenda in the country.
In Thailand the risk disaster early warning system has been designated by law to the department of the disaster prevention and mitigation. However, the representation of the department is only at the provincial level. The assistance from the department has been seen as not enough and not in time and communities were stimulated to recognize their own risk and the need to work together to solve or reduce the flood risk.
The Water, climate and development programme Lao PDR aims to develop stakeholder analysis and roadmap for capacity development on water security and climate resilience. Series of consultation meetings were conducted from June to September 2014 to gather inputs from stakeholders at national, province and river basin level.
In total 404 people from 55 institutions were involved in the meetings including public, private sector, academia and provinces throughout the country. The main finding from the series of consultations is that the knowledge of local communities in river basin about climate change is still limited. However, most stakeholders consider climate change as a challenge to find appropriate solutions for. Based on the findings, the Lao Water Partnership drafted a National Capacity Building Plan on Water Security for Climate Change Adaptation and Management.
Water Security for Development
Water is the key to the world’s ability to cope with climate change. Whether it is food security, poverty reduction, economic growth, energy production or human health – water is the nexus. Climate change is the spoiler. No matter how successful mitigation efforts might be, people will experience the impacts of climate change through water.
GWP is responding to the climate change challenge through the Global Water, Climate and Development Programme that includes a portfolio of programs and projects that aim to build climate resilience through better water management.
"Delivering Solutions"
The 3rd workshop of the Capacity Building Programme “The Economics of Adaptation, Water Security and Climate Resilient Development” took place in the framework of the Water, Climate, Development Program for Africa (WACDEP), in Hammamet, Tunisia, on December 22-25, 2014. The Programme is composed of a series of five workshop trainings that are following the framework cycle developed under WACDEP for water security and climate resilience.
The Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) has embarked on a new initiative under its Water, Climate and Development Programme (WACDEP) called “Climate-Proofing Water Investment in the Caribbean” which is being executed in partnership with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC).