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"Janneh Opens Fifth Annual UN-Water/Africa Meeting with a Call to Action" Addis Ababa, 19 July 2007 - The Fifth Annual Meeting of UN-Water/Africa began on 18th July 2007, at the United Nations Conference Centre in Addis Ababa to review the programme of work and to agree on specific joint activities. Meeting participants included senior government officials, National Water Officers, members of the diplomatic corps, academics, and UN Representatives. In his keynote statement, Mr.Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA, highlighted the importance of water to human life and the fact that water security is an instrument for social investment and mitigating economic losses. Furthermore, Mr. Janneh acknowledged the firm commitment within the UN family “ to support Africa in attaining the objectives setout” and urged that “every effort must be made to deliver a coordinated response, utilizing existing resources and voluntary funds to make “Water for Life: a decade for ACTION.” He ended his statement with a pledge to “lead this effort by ensuring that my institution, ECA, which hosts your secretariat, provides adequate resources to enable your group to succeed in the pioneering role as a model of Inter-Agency Coherence and Synergy”. In his opening remarks, Mr. Mohammed Tawfik, the Chairman of the UN/Water-Africa Group and representative of WMO reiterated the Group’s main objective to be providing support to AMCOW/NEPAD and other stakeholders to promote Africa’s water agenda. Dr. Ahmadu Babagana, Director for rural Economy and Agriculture Commission of the AU, speaking on behalf of Chairperson of the AUC, Prof. Alpha Oumar Konaré, and Mme. Rosebud Kurwijila, the AUC Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, meanwhile stressed that the outcomes of the meeting would shape the future of the support of the UN agencies to the development of Africa’s water supply and sanitation, climate change adaptation and agricultural and energy sectors. Dr. Babagana concluded by calling upon the UN Water/Africa group to provide increased support, not only to protect Africa’s available resources but also to conceive and implement complementary adaptation measures. Representatives of the UN-Water/Africa member agencies, including UNEP, FAO, UN-Habitat, the World Bank, NEPAD Secretariat and the African Ministerial Council on Water (AMCOW), also made comments and recommendations in the opening session. The workshop, which continues until 20 July, is expected to come up with recommendations aimed at strengthening coordination at various levels between AMCOW/NEPAD and partner agencies, as well as at assisting member States and regional institutions in their endeavor towards achieving the MDGs and implementing the African Water Vision 2025.
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