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UNICEF and WWF to work jointly on freshwater

The formal agreement followed the launch of a joint WWF-UNICEF report entitled Fresh Water for India's Children and Nature, the result of a two-year study of local level watersheds in five eco-regions in India. The research and recommendations are an element in the evolution of India's national water policy, aimed at providing safe drinking water for millions and the rehabilitation of degraded freshwater ecosystems.

The joint undertaking comes as the world's governments, working under the auspices of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), are negotiating an action plan on freshwater resources. The activity is a follow-up to the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

A workshop in New Delhi organized last January by UNICEF and WWF to discuss the draft report witnessed the full participation of six major ministries of the Indian Government and by leading NGOs, academic institutions and other stakeholders.

Today's Memorandum was signed by Claude Martin, Director General of WWF, and Sadig Rasheed, Director of the Programme Division of UNICEF.

"The India experience has inspired both WWF and UNICEF to engage in a global partnership," Dr. Martin said. "This is an open partnership. The more countries and governments join in, the better we shall be able to manage fresh water resources. Greater fresh water security means less suffering for women and children."

"The crisis in freshwater is a crisis for children," Dr. Rasheed stated. "Every year more than two million children under the age of five die as a result of unsafe water and poor environmental sanitation. To reduce this awful toll, UNICEF works to help communities protect and manage their water resources and environment and partnerships like this are essential in the effort."

WWF and UNICEF will carry out joint projects at the local, national and regional levels to promote sustainable community management of water resources and to establish the fundamental importance of overall ecosystem conservation. Emphasis will be placed on communicating the experiences and lessons learned in industrialized and developing countries regarding the management of fresh water resources.

Policy and programmatic solutions will be proposed. Particular attention will also be paid to protecting children from water pollution in urban and rural areas. Household water security will also be addressed along with the need for environmental rehabilitation.

The Memorandum notes: "As both organizations have a worldwide mandate and are both represented in a large number of countries, an initial analysis shall be undertaken jointly to concentrate the resources and experience of both Parties on a limited number of countries where the more immediate and serious needs are identified." Initially, an African country will be selected for cooperation."

To carry out its programmes, UNICEF and WWF will seek partnerships with other organizations, including inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, development banks, the private sector, donors, the scientific and academic communities, and other civil society members.

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