In 2017, water distress increased in Mali, a situation which alerted the Water Management Commission of the Sélingué reservoir and Markala dam (CGESM) to convene a third meeting since the beginning of 2018. This was on Wednesday 21 February 2018 in Ségou, at the direction of the Office du Niger.
A regional GWP delegation led by the chair, Prof. Amadou Hama MAIGA and including the Executive Secretary, Mr Armand HOUANYE and the communication and knowledge manager, Sidi COULIBALY, visited Guinea from 25 February to 1st March 2018.
On 22 February, the CWP leaders met to discuss preparations for the visit of the regional delegation from 25 February to 1 March. This visit is meant to support CWP Guinea in strengthening its visibility and together make efforts to set up initiatives to support the promotion of IWRM.
The Benin Country Water Partnership has started a process to establish local water committees (LWC) in micro basins as part of the Multi Year Programme 4 (MYP4) with the technical and financial support of Protos and the Belgian Development Cooperation.
Burkina Faso’s Ministry of Water and Sanitation together with the Country Water Partnership held the 3rd edition of the National Water and Sanitation Forum (FNEA).
The regional secretariat has continued activities to strengthen the collaboration with strategic partners at regional level. After 2017 year ending activities with the Volta Basin Authority, a meeting was held on 31st January 2018 at VBA to exchange on concrete actions to carry out jointly by the two institutions.
On Wednesday 31 January 2018, the Via Water project was launched in Cotonou, Benin. The launch ceremony took place under the sponsorship of the Deputy Secretary General of the Minister of Water and Mines, in the presence of the actors of the consortium in charge of the said project, the representatives of public structures of the sub-sector, the Ministry of Health, the young water professionals of the Beninese Network of Youth of the World Water Parliament (RB/PMJE) and the economic operators of the water sector.
On Thursday 11 January 2018, Mr. André TOUPE outgoing chair of the Benin Country Water Partnership has handed over to his successor, Professor Euloge AGBOSSOU.
The Water Management Commission for the Sélingué and Markala reservoirs (CGESM) was in conclave in Sélingué to take stock of the various recommendations of their previous session; namely: the report on the monitoring of the Sélingué hydroelectric dam from 1 to 20 January 2018 and the results of the simulation of storage and filling 2018 of this dam, as well as the monitoring of the management of the Markala dam in response to the water deficit this year.
On Tuesday 16 January, a national stakeholder information workshop on the development of three Municipal Strategic Plans for public water supply and sanitation services in Mali was organized.