Loic Fauchon, President of the World Water Council, joined Jose Angel Gurria Trevino, Secretary General of the OECD, for World Water Day to reveal a new collaboration.
They launched a new programme to produce new data, evidence and policy guidance on water security in Africa. The event held at the OECD Headquarters in Paris, France, on Friday, March 22, 2019.
This new programme is conceived as a follow-up to the OECD Secretary-General’s receipt of the King Hassan II Great World Water Prize on March 21, 2018 at the 8th World Water Forum under the theme “Working towards greater solidarity and inclusion in order to ensure water security and climate justice”. This tribute paid every three years to strategic leaders recognised OECD’s leadership, guidance and convening power to raise the profile of water in national policy agendas.
The Secretary-General of the OECD explained: “With 250 million Africans expected to live in water stressed areas by 2030, and 60% of the population expected to live in cities by 2050, now is the time to get water policies right for sustainable development in Africa. We are using the Prize Award as seed money to advance this cause and we need other institutions to join us in this collective effort!”
The President of the World Water Council indicated: “No country can ignore that water security is essential for sustainable and equitable development. No government can ignore that water is a fundamental human right. No international organisation can ignore that water and climate are intimately linked. For this purpose, we must reach out to all sectors while involving all levels of government.”
Findings will be released at the 9th World Water Forum, to be held in Dakar, Senegal in 2021.
