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Revised National Targets of Armenia in the Context of the Unece- Who/Europe Protocol on Water and Health

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Revised National Targets of Armenia in the Context of the Unece- Who/Europe Protocol on Water and Health Republic of Armenia REVISED NATIONAL TARGETS OF ARMENIA IN THE CONTEXT OF THE UNECE- WHO/EUROPE PROTOCOL ON WATER AND HEALTH August 2019 5 Authors Emma Anakhasyan Armine Arushanyan Nune Bakunts Tigran Oganezov Gayane Shahnazaryan Disclaimer: The EU-funded programme European Union Water Initiative Plus for the Eastern Partnership Countries (EUWI+ 4 EaP) is implemented by the UNECE, OECD, responsible for the implementation of Result 1 and an EU member state consortium of Austria, managed by the lead coordinator Umweltbundesamt, and of France, managed by the International Office for Water, responsible for the implementation of Results 2 and 3. This document, the “REVISED NATIONAL TARGETS OF ARMENIA IN THE CONTEXT OF THE UNECE- WHO/EUROPE PROTOCOL ON WATER AND HEALTH IN ARMENIA”, was produced within the UNECE-led component of the EUWI+ with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union or the Governments of the Eastern Partnership Countries. This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of, or sovereignty over, any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries, and to the name of any territory, city or area. Note: During completion of this report, the governmental structure of departments has changed by the Law of May 8, 2019 on Amendments and Additions to the Law on Structure and Activities of the Government of the Republic of Armenia. The Water Committee of the Ministry of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia has been transferred and renamed to the Water Committee of the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of the Republic of Armenia. Furthermore, the Ministry of Nature Protection has been renamed to Ministry of Environment. While during the baseline analysis and the revision of targets the old structures were still in place, this report refers already to the new structures and names, as of May/June 2019. Imprint Owner and Editor: UNECE August 2019 1 Acknowledgement The present report was prepared in the framework of the project “Revision of National Targets in the Context of the Protocol on Water and Health in Armenia and Implementation of the Action Plan on Equitable Access to Water and Sanitation”, supported by the European Union-funded European Union Water Initiative Plus (EUWI+) for the Eastern Partnership programme. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) assisted the Republic of Armenia in the implementation of the project. The project was implemented in coordination with the Water Resources Management Agency of the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia (RA), the Water Committee of the RA Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure and the Ministry of Health and with the organizational support provided by the non-governmental organization (NGO) “Armenian Women for Health and Healthy Environment” (AWHHE). The report was prepared based on the technical paper prepared by the members of the National Working Group and adopted by the project’s Steering Committee. The following experts assisted in the preparation of this report: Edgar Pirumyan (Water Resources Management Agency of the RA Ministry of Environment) Armine Arushanyan (Water Committee of the RA Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure) Nune Bakunts (RA Ministry of Health) Emma Anakhasyan (Team Lead) Tigran Oganezov (Independent Expert) Gayane Shahnazaryan (Independent Expert) Alisher Mamadzhanov (UNECE, Secretariat of the Protocol on Water and Health) Christine Kitzler (UNECE, Secretariat of the Protocol on Water and Health) The project team would also like to thank the members of the Steering Committee of the EUWI National Policy Dialogue (NPD) on Integrated Water Resources Management and Water Supply and Sanitation and all national and international experts involved in the assessment of the situation in Armenia for the valuable comments and support they have provided for the preparation of the report. 2 Summary The European Union Water Initiative (EUWI) was launched at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002 with the overriding aim to coordinate EU development assistance in the water sector. In Armenia, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have been supporting the EUWl since 2006 through a National Policy Dialogue (NPD) on Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) process. An NPD is a multi-stakeholder platform for discussing water policy reforms with key decisions taken at biannual Steering Committee meetings. Currently, the Republic of Armenia is part of the EUWI+ programme for the Eastern Partnership countries, which addresses the existing challenges in both development and implementation of efficient water resources management. The project entitled “Revision of national targets in the context of the Protocol on Water and Health in Armenia and implementation of the Action Plan on equitable access to water and sanitation” is part of the EUWI+ programme with the aim to revise the national targets set in 2014 in the framework of the UNECE- WHO/Europe Protocol on Water and Health (Protocol on Water and Health) and assess the water legislation in the context of the equitable access to drinking water and sanitation. The project has been implemented in close cooperation with the Ministries of Environment (previously Ministry of Nature Protection), Health and Territorial Administration and Infrastructure (previously Ministry of Energy Infrustructures and Natural Resources) of Armenia with the participation of the NGO Armenian Women for Health and Healthy Environment. The project was guided by the Steering Committee of the EUWI NPD in Armenia, which was chaired by Mr. Edgar Pirumyan, Head of the Water Resources Management Agency (WRMA) under the RA Ministry of Environment, and whose other members were representatives of key Armenian entities covering issues of water resources management, water supply and sanitation, including health issues, with the involvement of NGOs. The 17th Meeting of the Steering Committee of the National Policy Dialogue (NPD) on Integrated Water Resources Management and Water Supply and Sanitation in Armenia in October 2018, facilitated a discussion on the revision of targets in the context of the Protocol on Water and Health and equitable access to drinking water supply and sanitation in Armenia. During this meeting the baseline information collected by the national experts (Project Working Group members) was presented and discussed. The national consultants with expertise and experience in the main fields covered by the Protocol on Water and Health, compiled the information needed and produced the draft of the baseline analysis to be considered by the Steering Committee. The National Stakeholder Consultation Meeting on the Protocol on Water and Health and Equitable Access to Water Supply and Sanitation in Armenia was held on 19 February 2019 and co-chaired by the Head of the Water Resources Management Agency of the RA Ministry of Environment (previously Ministry of Nature Protection), the Deputy Director of the “National Center for Disease Control and Prevention” SNCO of the RA Ministry of Health and the Deputy Chairman of the Water Committee of the RA Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure (previously Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure (MTAI)). The aim of the Consultation meeting was to update and discuss the revised targets set in the context of the Protocol and the analysis of the water legislative framework to identify the legislative barriers to ensure equitable access to water supply and sanitation. Stakeholders were invited to submit written comments on the baseline analysis and the revised targets to the Ministry of Environment. As of May 2019, the Working Group of national experts completed the work on the baseline analysis, and finalized the work on the draft targets and target dates under the Protocol based on comments received by stakeholders. The draft targets and target dates were submitted to the Ministry of Environment for further circulation among stakeholders for their comments and for further approval by the 5th Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on Water and Health to be held in November 2019 in Belgrade. 3 List of Acronyms AWHHE Armenian Women for Health and Healthy Environment CJSC Closed Joint Stock Company DRC Dispute Resolution Commission EMIC Environmental Monitoring and Information Center EU European Union EUWI European Union Water Initiative IWRM Integrated Water Resources Management LLC Limited Liability Company MDGs Millennium Development Goals MES Ministry of Emergency Situations MoE Ministry of Environment MoH Ministry of Health MTAI Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure NAS National Academy of Sciences NCDCP National Center for Disease Control and Prevention NGO Non - Governmental Organization NPD National Policy Dialogue NWC National Water Council NWP National Water Programme OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development PPP Public-Private Partnership PSRC Public Services Regulatory Commission RA Republic of Armenia RS Rescue Service SCWE State Committee of Water Economy SDGs Sustainable Development Goals SNCO State non - commercial organization UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNECE
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