The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), a partner in the Integrating Water, Land and Ecosystems Management in Caribbean Small Island Developing States (IWEco) project, was subcontracted to execute activities under project component 3 (policy & legislation), which falls under the development of a Regional Action Framework for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) for the CARICOM Region; a component to be implemented in collaboration with the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) was contracted during 2021, to develop the Regional Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region.
As part of this process, GWP-C invited stakeholders from the ten (10) IWEco member states (Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago) and regional organisations to a Regional Consultation on the Draft Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region. The virtual Consultation took place on February 17th, 2022 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. AST and saw the participation of over one hundred and fifty (150) participants.
The main purpose of the Regional Consultation was to engage Caribbean stakeholders in the finalisation and validation of the Regional Action Framework and to:
- Consult stakeholders on the key aspects of the Draft Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region.
- Incorporate stakeholders’ inputs into the Draft Framework prior to its finalisation.
- Establish ownership of the Regional Action Framework for IWRM with key water stakeholders at both the regional and national levels.
The Consultation opened with a video featuring stakeholders from some of the countries of focus under the IWRM Framework. In which they provided their perspectives on the main IWRM issues in their countries and indicated what they are most looking forward to with the development of the Regional Action Framework for IWRM. Watch video here.
Dr. Douglas Slater, Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) of the CARICOM Secretariat delivered the feature address at the event. Dr. Slater shared that for the past decade or more, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has recognised the urgency of prudent and sustainable water resources management, as a key support and pillar of the productive and social sectors.
Outside of the CARICOM, Dr. Slater made special mention of various regional organisations including the GWP-C that have made great strides in keeping the regional momentum and maintaining strategic high level discussions on the priority of expeditious water management in the face of climate variability and long-term climate change. According to Dr. Slater “a holistic approach to water resources is needed more than ever.” He urged stakeholders at the Consultation to engage on governance approaches and institutional arrangements, to arrive at practical solutions to harmonise water management.
A major component of the Consultation was enabling participants to be split into four (4) breakout room sessions to discuss specific strategic goals within the Draft Action Framework for IWRM.
Prior to this core activity, Ms. Simone Lewis, GWP-C’s Regional Coordinator and the Consultancy Team Lead was able to introduce the Consultancy team and the GWP-C Secretariat members providing support to the overall Consultancy.
Additionally, two (2) important presentations were delivered in plenary by members of the Consultancy team: Dr. Ronald Roopnarine (IWRM Specialist) and Dr. Paulette Bynoe (IWRM Specialist).
Dr. Roopnarine’s presentation gave stakeholders a comprehensive overview of the Consultancy (from start to present time) and highlighted the ten (10) national consultations with IWEco countries that preceded the Regional Consultation.
Dr. Bynoe’s presentation delved into an overview of the Draft Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region.
Her presentation gave stakeholders a clear overview of the Draft Framework along with areas such as its:
- Vision, Mission and Overarching Goal
- Priority Areas
- Strategic Goals and related Specific Goals and Objectives
- Activities (highlighting examples)
- Milestones
- Critical Elements for Successful Implementation
- Strategic Monitoring and Evaluation Framework aligned to SDGs
In addition to the feedback and inputs received from stakeholders present at the Consultation, a survey link, along with supporting documents was also shared with stakeholders from the IWEco participating countries to give them an opportunity to provide feedback on the Draft Action Framework. These inputs will support the finalisation of the Framework by GWP-C.
Completed Regional Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region
GWP-C’s work in developing the Regional Action Framework for IWRM for the CARICOM Region culminated with presenting the completed and final Framework at the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States’ (OECS) 9th Council of Ministers on Environmental Sustainability (COM:ES 09). The Meeting was held in St. Vincent and the Grenadines from May 31st – June 2nd, 2022, under the theme, “Shifting to more Integrated Approaches for Sustainability, Resilience and Prosperity in OECS SIDS.”
This meeting sought to address the unique challenges faced by the region and chart the way forward. An OECS Press Release on May 30th highlighting the event stressed that:
“OECS countries, amongst the most vulnerable in the world, continue to seek to urgently position themselves globally, regionally and locally to better their chances of survival and prosperity given “the interdependence of climate…and human societies set against concurrently unfolding non-climatic global trends e.g., biodiversity loss, overall unsustainable consumption of natural resources, land and ecosystem degradation…social and economic inequalities and a pandemic.”
As part of this event, GWP-C was officially invited to present the recently developed Action Framework for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) for the CARICOM Region. As GWP-C was contracted as a consultant to develop this Framework which commenced in 2021 and officially ended in April 2022.
On Day 2 of the event, GWP-C was represented by Consultancy Team Member and IWRM Specialist, Dr. Ronald Roopnarine (Caribbean WaterNet Network Manager and Lecturer at the Faculty of Food and Agriculture, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus), who gave a presentation on the completed Framework and gave recommendations for implementation throughout the region.
