Segments (version1)

Proposals for the World Water Forum in Dakar
Thursday 24th March 2022 (tbc)
Water is a key factor for the success of the Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement and the Sendai Agreement on disaster risk reduction. However, despite this recognition of the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation by the United Nations the challenges remain immense. More than 2 billion people are still deprived of drinking water and sanitation.
In their mission of control and monitoring of governmental action, parliamentarians, who also carry the voice of citizens, HAVE AN ESSENTIAL ROLE TO PLAY in advancing the international political agenda at the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda with regard to the implementation of the water and sanitation targets of the Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, by proposing, amending, and monitoring, they will help to achieve concrete progress towards access to water and sanitation for all.
The segment will conclude with the adoption of the Dakar Action Plan for Parliamentarians, which will be the political declaration of the Forum, and will feed into the New York Water Conference in September 2023 (see closing remarks below).

• Honorable KEITA, Commission Chair – National Assembly SENEGAL
• Executive secretariat of the 9th Wordl Water Forum
• President of the World Water Council
• Chair The Global Legislators Organisation - (GLOBE)
• Chair Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)
• Chair UPA
• Chair Global Water Council
• Chair National Assembly of SENEGAL

• Capitalization and valorization of the work of parliamentarians on water and sanitation
• Parliamentary dialogue on water and sanitation issues at local, national and international levels
• Capacity building of parliamentarians to pass laws that promote water and sanitation

• Launch of the GLOBE-GEF Report on the assessment of natural capital governance in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, South Africa and Nigeria
• Call from the Parliaments of ECOWAS countries for the advent of a community legislation on water

Call for a convention for the protection of water infrastructure in the event of armed conflict.

"Monitoring, evaluation and consolidation of national public policies and international commitments on water and sanitation for sustainable development”

• Monitoring and evaluation of the optimal implementation of the legislative and budgetary framework and public policies on water and sanitation
• Passing laws and budgets linked to education programs with a focus on water and the environment, to be implemented by dedicated ministries and local governments
• Promotion of inclusive, sustainable and fruitful policy dialogue processes around water and sanitation for sustainable development
• Establishment of consultation frameworks between parliamentarians and local elected officials for a better appropriation of programs, achievements and approaches in the field of water and sanitation
• Strengthening the involvement of local associations in all decision-making and implementation processes related to water and sanitation

Time for announcements and calls II (to be specified) (16:00-16:30)

• Sanitation and Water for All, SWA, Mme Catarina de Albuquerque,
• Establishment of an international network of parliamentarians for water security for peace and development

Water security: a major issue in cities With a global population of 9.7 billion by 2050, 70% of which will live in cities, water demand is expected to increase by 55%, notably due to growing demand from manufacturing industry (+400%), power generation (+140%) and domestic use (+130%) (OECD,2015). At the same time, cities and local governments face a multitude of challenges related to deteriorating water quality, water-related natural disasters (floods, droughts), use conflicts, and aging infrastructure (OECD,2015). These challenges are exacerbated by climate change, population growth, and rapid urbanization, which exacerbate water issues at the local, basin, national, and transboundary levels. To address the various risks related to water and sanitation, cities and local governments have a key role to play in managing water resources, providing drinking water and sanitation services, and preserving ecosystems and biodiversity, notably through their combined actions in governance, public investment, urban planning, and infrastructure. Water is a global issue that is also managed at the local level, as responsibilities for policy making, information, monitoring and assessment, regulation, and financing of water are largely shared among several levels of government. Since water crises are often governance crises, it is crucial to adopt a multi-level approach to water governance involving all stakeholders, including mayors and local elected officials. Mayors and local elected officials: key players

In this context, on the occasion of the 9th World Water Forum in Dakar ("the Forum"), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG-Africa) are organising, in cooperation with many institutional partners and city networks such as UCLG, Eurocities, ICLEI and C40, a day dedicated to the role of cities and local authorities in water and sanitation management, as one of the five key policy segments of the Forum. This day will build on the conclusions of the local authorities process of the previous editions of the World Water Forum and will lead to the adoption of the "Mayors' and Local Authorities' Plea for Water" (see Annex) in line with the Local Authorities' Declaration on Water (WEF4, Mexico City, 2006), the Istanbul Water Consensus (WEF5, Istanbul, 2009), the political messages of local and regional authorities (WEF6, Marseille 2012) and the Brasilia Local and Regional Governments' Call to Action for Water (WEF8 Brasilia, 2018). Objectives of the "cities and local governments" segment The objectives of the Cities and Local Governments Day - which aims to bring together about 100 mayors of cities of different sizes from around the world, as well as leaders of national, regional and international city associations and networks, are multiple:

1. To define and highlight the essential role of the action of cities and local governments for each of the four thematic priorities of the 9th World Water Forum, namely:
   • "Water and Sanitation Security"
   • Water for rural development
   • Cooperation
   • Tools and means of implementation"
2. Decrease the collective action of mayors and elected officials in the field of sustainable development, in order to reach the 18 water-related targets of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, in particular the SDGs:
   • No. 6 "Access to water and sanitation for all and sustainable management of water resources"
   • No. 11 "Inclusive, resilient and sustainable cities and communities"
3. Promote peer-to-peer exchange and raise the voice of mayors on water security, in synergy with urban, rural and land-use policies, including through:
   • Cooperation between cities to support the development of ambitious local policies
   • Better collection of water-related data, knowledge and scientific analysis
   • Strengthening local capacities for management and public policies
   • More effective decentralized cooperation and mobilization of dedicated funding
4. Inaugurate the African Mayors' Roundtable for Water Security as a pilot/experiment to implement the above objectives on the African continent between the 9th and 10th World Water Forums (2022-2025).
5. Adopt a "Plea" of mayors and local governments for water security as a vector of peace, economic growth, social inclusion, and sustainable development in the world, whose commitments will be followed by 2025..

Organisation

The mobilization of actors will be ensured through the OECD, UCLG Africa and partner institutions, relying in particular on city networks and their partners. It is proposed to organize the Day of Cities and Local Governments in four stages

Session I

(1h)

An opening session (1h) with

• Welcome from the city and the country hosting the Forum (5 min each)
• 3-4 short speeches by the organizers of the day and representatives of city networks at the national, regional and global levels (5 min each)
• Broadcast of 2-3 short videos on water issues in some cities (5-6 min)
• A high-level presentation of the main water security issues in cities around the world to set the framework for the debates (15 min)

Session II

(3h)

A first plenary session of 3 hours entitled "Crossed views of cities and local governments of the world on water security" will bring together about a hundred mayors from around the world to discuss solutions and good practices in the fields related to the four Priorities of the Forum as well as the means necessary to accelerate the implementation of the sustainable development goals and targets related to water and cities, in particular the SDGs 6 and 11

• Brief presentation of the Forum's main messages to mayors and local governments by the Thematic Group Co-Chairs (5 min each)
• 1st Round table with 15-20 mayors to share their respective experiences on the challenges and priorities identified by the Forum (3 min each)
• Brief presentation of the main actions suggested to the mayors and elected officials by the Thematic Group Co-Chairs (5 min each)
• 2nd Round table with 15-20 mayors to highlight their respective commitments with concrete examples of initiatives (3 min each)

Session II

(3h)

A 2nd plenary session of 3 hours which will host the "Round Table of African Mayors for Water Security" developed jointly by the OECD and UCLG-Africa, to which all mayors, elected officials, and stakeholders participating in the day cities and local governments are invited. This round table will focus on the problems of African cities, and will aim to encourage dialogue and cooperation with other cities in the world to overcome the challenges identified.

• Brief presentation of the main objectives, the observatory, the program of activities and the expectations of the roundtable by the OECD and UCLG-Africa (5 min each)
• Presentation of the main issues of water governance in African cities identified in the OECD report (10 min)
• 1st Roundtable with 15-20 African mayors to share their respective experiences on the challenges and priorities identified in the report (3 min each)
• 2nd Roundtable with 15-20 mayors from around the world to share their experiences in the African continent and/or similar challenges they are facing (3 min each)
• Brief presentation of institutional partners involved in water issues in Africa (donors, NGOs, city networks, etc.) and potential synergies (5 min each)

Session IV

(45mn)

A closing session (45 min) o Summary of the day's messages and proposed follow-up actions (5 min)

• Approval of the 9th Water Forum's Mayors' and Local Authorities' Advocacy for Water Security and the Roadmap for 2022-2025 (15 min)
• Some targeted, complementary interventions (3-5 min each)
• Group photo and closing of the dedicated day (5 min)

Basin organizations are peacemakers and accelerators of sustainable development. National or transboundary organizations, they are by construction multi-actor platforms. They are places of dialogue, between countries at the transboundary level, between water users and actors at the sub-national level. In order to accelerate the achievement of SDGs 6.5.1 and 6.5.2, it is important to develop these two scales of sharing and solidarity. Basin cooperation has indeed proven itself and brings concrete benefits:

1. At the transboundary level

• More resources by pooling financial & technical resources,
• Optimization of the benefits obtained from major structures thanks to their location. Experiences of common infrastructures in several countries exist: their successes (sharing of benefits; peace ...) and difficulties must be disseminated more broadly.

1. In national multi-stakeholder mode

• Integrated approach in line with the SDGs
• More precise diagnosis of water resources
• Better ownership of the measures decided
• Optimal results of coordinated sector policies
• Necessary complementarity between transboundary IWRM and national IWRM: Transboundary Basin Organizations (TBO) develop a transboundary management framework. But they must be able to count on a national (then local) variation so that the measures can materialize in the different territories. And vice versa: national IWRM needs to be consolidated at cross-border level, under the coordination of an operational and recognized RBO.

The segment will conclude with the adoption of the Dakar action plan for the basins, which will set out the Forum’s political declaration, and feed into the content of the New York water conference in September 2023 (see closing below).

Opening ceremony (10:00-10:30)

• Mr. President of the World Water Council
• Minister of Water of Senegal

"Transboundary basins and cooperation between actors, a contribution to peace" Topics covered

• Successes of cross-border approaches by basin (case studies, acceleration tracks) and benefits for populations and countries
• Strengthening of institutional and legal frameworks (new agreements, accessions to the 1992/1997 UN Conventions) ; reinforcement of TBOs
• Sustainability of funding (sustainable financing mechanisms, commitment of countries, eligibility of TBOs with donors)
• Positive impact of TBO on planning and investments at national and transboundary levels
• Development of shared information systems Draft agenda

1. Keynote presentation (including the conclusions of the thematic sessions)
2. High-level panel (exchanges and debates around the themes of the session, reactions to the introductory presentation): TBOS’ executive secretaries/directors, ministers and political leaders, UN agencies, donors
3. Presentation of initiatives and calls to action For example, in preparation:

• New European Union initiative in favour of transboundary basin bodies ?
• Confirmation of the ANBO/INBO project for the sustainability and development of ANBO
• New country adhesions to 1992 Water Convention ?
• Presentation of new GEF strategy for transboundary cooperation

Lunch Break

Session II (14:00-15:30)

"National Basins and the integration of policies, a contribution to sustainable development" Topics covered

• Successes of multi-stakeholder approaches by basin (Case studies, acceleration tracks)
• Strengthening the intersectoral coherence of public policies (industry, agriculture) with stakeholder mobilization in their implementation.
• Better dialogue and coordination between cities and basins.
• Strengthening frameworks for the participation of actors and civil society. Draft agenda 

1. Keynote presentation (including the conclusions of the thematic sessions)
2. High-level panel (exchanges and debates around the themes of the session, reactions to the introductory presentation): Ministers and political leaders, water directors, heads of basin committees, representatives of sectoral users (WASH, industry, energy, agriculture, tourism, etc.), donors
3.  Presentation of initiatives and calls to action

For example, in preparation:

• Establishment of a permanent coordination of international donors for IWRM by basin
• Launch of the network of water directors for IWRM, etc... 
• …/...

Closing: (15:30-16:00)

Adoption of the action plan of Dakar for basins

In view of UN Water Conference of September 2023: request of a specific dialogue dedicated to Basin level IWRM, including transboundary cooperation (SDG 6.5), presentations by :

• Minister of Water of Morocco, President of INBO
• Mrs Secretary-General of the UNECE
• Representatives of Netherlands and Tajikistan, cochairs of the Water Decade

The Dakar action plan for the basins is defined as a political objective to impact the progress and the conclusions of the United Nations conference on water of September 2023. It is articulated around the global need to accelerate the SDG 6.5.1 and 6.5.2 "via basins and for basins":

1. In a context of increasing pressure on water resources, basin organizations must strengthen their mobilization to:
   • Confirm their role and effectiveness in the service of water security, peace and sustainable development
   • Strengthen upstream-downstream solidarity and facilitate the allocation of water resources and decisions about large infrastructures
   • Capitalize on past initiatives, in particular the High Level Panel on Water and Peace
   • Promote the positive impact and concrete results produced by basin organizations in terms of development, shared facilities (health, energy, agriculture, etc.) and ecological approach
   • Show how RBOs and local authorities can work together to bring innovation to the field
2. Basin organizations must be supported and strengthened:
   • Strengthening of visibility and institutional frameworks, especially for transboundary basins
   • Strengthening of data sharing practices and information systems
   • Generalization of practices and tools for the participation of water users, in a logic of accountability
   • Reinforcement of exchanges with other administrative and territorial levels
   • Argue the need for (T)BOs to access funding more easily, in particular with reference to the 2021 UNECE publication on the funding of cross-border cooperation and development by basin