INTERNATIONAL NETWORK RESEAU INTERNATIONAL RED INTERNACIONAL OF BASIN ORGANIZATIONS DES ORGANISMES DE BASSIN DE ORGANISMOS DE CUENCA December 2004 - January 2005 - N° 13 r IN 2005, INBO IS MOBILIZING TO PREPARE THE MEXICO e TH t 4 WORLD WATER FORUM th t The 4 WORLD WATER FO- For more than 10 years, they have in November in Niamey (Niger) RUM will take place in carried out exchanges between them during the 2nd General Assembly within INBO to identify and dissemi- of the African Network of Basin Mexico City FD. - BANAMEX nate the most useful and effective ap- Organizations (ANBO). e Congress Center (Mexico) - proaches, but also to raise the deci- l from 16 to 22 March 2006 sion-makers’ awareness on the en- In addition, INBO will participate in countered difficulties. the International Conference on Wa- and will be, as for the previ- ter in Central Asia on 30 and 31 May s ous events of Marrakech Within the Network, the partners 2005 in Dushanbe (Tajikistan), and al- (1997), the Hague (2000) or have organized themselves at the re- so in the initiative of UNESCO and of Kyoto (2003), the meeting gional level, either African, American, the International Water Academy of Asian, European or Mediterranean, in Norway on the resolution of conflicts place for all the stakeholders order to strengthen neighborhood w on shared waters, at the beginning of of the water sector of the relations and to take into account all November in Stavanger. whole world. the diversities of local and regional Contacts are ongoing with our Japa- The International Network of Basin situations. e nese colleagues for the consolidation Organizations (INBO), which now In Europe, the Water Framework Di- of the Asian Network of Basin Orga- gathers 153 permanent members rective (WFD) is obviously the big nizations. or observers from 52 countries, endeavor that mobilizes the INBO n as well as the majority of the Interna- partners of the 25 Member States of In liaison with the Council of Europe, tional Commissions or Transboun- the European Union and of the Can- the International Secretariat for Water dary Basin Organizations, will be a dy- didates or associated Countries, as it and Solidarity-Water-Europe, INBO namic partner in this event and in its includes the main management princi- will also be a partner in the week de- preparation phase in 2005. ples that have been formalized by our voted to the citizen’s approach to water management, in Strasbourg k Network for a decade. Of course, it is on the topic of inte- (France), from 17 to 21 October 2005. grated water resource management INBO proposed to the Mexican A preparatory meeting might also be r (IWRM) on the scale of the basins of Authorities, the World Water rivers, lakes and aquifers, that INBO Council and GWP to organize, organized during this autumn in Cen- can share the practical experience ac- with all interested partners, a tral America. quired by its members in the field. session on the participation of ¡Our ideas are progressing, o The specificity of the Network is in- the public and water users in let’s get mobilized to make deed to gather the Governmental and basin management, on 18 March our results known 2006 in Mexico City, within the in Mexico City! Basin Organizations, which are really th in charge of defining and implemen- "IWRM" topic of the 4 World w ting water policy in their respective Forum. countries: far from academic speech- In order to prepare this session and t es, INBO members are directly res- to mobilize its members, INBO al- ponsible for water management and ready plans for three large region- have to face the daily realities that it al preparatory meetings in 2005: e implies and the preparation of the fu- from 23 to 25 May in Mar- ture. rakech (Morocco) for the Better than anybody else, they know Mediterranean basin, with n the stakes and the problems to be MENBO General Assembly, solved locally in each basin and com- from 29 September to mit themselves to carry out the ac- tions they deem necessary, either for 1 October in Namur (Wal- loon region - Belgium), with applying the regulations, or for mobi- rd lizing financial resources and imple- the 3 Assembly of the Group e menting projects or for dialogue and of European Basin Organiza- the involvement of users and of all tions for the Implementation of the citizens concerned. the Framework Directive, h www.inbo-news.org T GENERAL ASSEMBLY - 24 / 28 JANUARY 2004 - THE MARTINIQUE "DECLARATION OF TROIS ILETS" In order to achieve these ob- When translating into the jectives, while taking account national water policy of of all adaptations required by each Country the princi- the different field situations, ples of integrated manage- the delegates recommended ment of water resources, that the following procedures and in consistency with regarding good governance of their own IWRM national inland freshwater resources plans, basin manage- and coastal zones should be ment plans (or master used all over the World: plans) should be pre- This Integrated Water Re- pared, through dia- source Management at the logue and transparency, river basin level should aim to set the objectives to at meeting, in a holistic, be achieved in the me- Pierre BARIL, former President, consistent, sustainable dium term, opens the General Assembly, and inter-sectoral man- Reliable, representative, in the presence of Pascal BERTEAUD, ner, all essential and le- harmonized and easily ac- French Water Director gitimate needs of the ci- cessible integrated infor- tizens, at combating was- mation and monitoring tage, protecting against risk, systems and specific re- Better governance of International Network of preventing pollution, at pre- search should be organized freshwaters, which are Basin Organizations (IN- serving and rehabilitating in each basin, limited and vulnerable, is BO), to define, all together, ecosystems, The establishment of spe- one of the main keys to the most suitable actions need- In each country, a clear cific financing systems, sustainable development, ed for achieving the objectives legal framework must based on the users’ as it is essential to sustain of integrated and participatory specify the rights and obli- (consumers and pol- life on our planet and en- management of inland surface gations, the possible levels luters) contribution and sure the health and socio- and ground water resources of decentralization, the ins- common cause, is re- economic progress of our and of related coastal zones. titutional responsibilities of quired in each basin to en- societies, while respecting The delegates reaffirmed that the different stakeholders, sure the implementation of the environment. the problems linked to water the processes and means successive priority ac- From 24 to 28 January governance are challenges that needed for good water tion plans and a ba- 2004, 178 representatives can no longer be tackled on a governance, lanced management of of governmental adminis- sectoral or local basis, or in- The representatives of the resource and im- trations in charge of water deed separately. populations, local authori- prove or maintain its management, of Basin Or- In fact, the search for solu- ties, water users or of or- quality, as well as the ganizations, already exis- tions must pass through an ganizations representing smooth operation of ting or being created, integrated and holistic ap- collective interest should community utilities. coming from 39 countries, proach, organized at the participate in this manage- These contributions, de- and from interested bi- relevant level of basins of ment beside administra- fined by consensus in Basin and multilateral coopera- rivers, lakes and aquifers, tions, especially in Basin Committees, should be tion agencies, met in either local, national or Councils or Commit- managed at the level of the Trois-Ilets in the Mar- transboundary. tees. basin, in a decentralized tinique, during the sixth manner, by a specialized, General Assembly of the Indeed, river basins are the Information, awareness and natural territories in which education of populations technical and financial water runs on or users and of their repre- basin Organization. The new INBO President: the soil or in sentatives are required. Madeleine JOUYE De GRANDMAISON the sub soil, whatever are the national or adminis- trative boun- daries or li- 178 Delegates from 39 Countries mits crossed. The Network Newsletter - N° 13 - December 2004 - January 2005 2 1 8 M a r c " h P a 2 r 0 t 0 RY 2004 - THE MARTINIQUE ic 6 M i i n a p – e b n a 4 t x a d t h i s io W c i w n o n a o m t o r e f l a r t d n u h W a e g se a e r p t m s u e b r As regards transboun- Water has no national or It is necessary e l F Pierre BARIL n ic o dary rivers, lakes or administrative boundary: to support t r Quebec Sub-Minister " u aquifers, cooperation jointly managing the resources the creation for Water m agreements should be shared between several neigh- and strengthening signed by riparian Coun- boring States of the 263 trans- of Basin tries and Management boundary rivers and lakes and Organizations Plans designed at the level hundreds of transboundary over the world! of the whole basin, espe- aquifers over the world is The delegates of cially in international or strategic and a priority and the General As- transboundary Basin should take this reality into ac- sembly of the In- Commissions, Authori- count. ternational Net- ties or Organizations. The islands are systems which work of Basin Or- offer a wide range of biodiversi- ganizations reques- ty, ecosystems and ted that Official bi- socioeconomic en- or multilateral De- Christiane RUNEL, tities, where mana- velopment Aid and Director of gement of freshwa- the programs of In- "INBO Newsletter" ter and coastal ternational Coope- areas is a complex ration Organiza- issue which re- tions should be re- quires special at- focused to support tention, a specific projects aiming at legal framework implementing real and adapted means.