H.R.H. Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud announces the establishment of a million dollar AGFUND-UNESCO Fund in support of projects for the preservation and development of freshwater resources
17-07-2003 2:30 pm H.R.H. Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, President of the Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organizations (AGFUND) delivered a special address in his role of UNESCO Special Envoy for Water at the Symposium on Education, Water and Sustainable Development held at the UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education in Delft, the Netherlands on 17 July 2003. On this occasion H.R.H. Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz announced the establishment of an AGFUND-UNESCO Fund to support projects for the preservation and development of freshwater resources.
“…Many developing countries will be faced with water scarcity in the near future. This is mainly the result of growing demand for water due to rapid population growth, improved living standards, industrial development and increasing urbanisation... The only solution to the water problem for countries facing water scarcity is to improve their water resource management and strengthen the capabilities of their institutions. This is the only way to shrink the gap between the water supply and rising demand to meet the requirements of development…” said H.R.H. Prince Talal during his special address.
The Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, designated H.R.H. Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz as UNESCO Special Envoy for Water at a nomination ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters on 18 December 2002.
