© UNESCO
UNESCO-IHP and partners continue to work towards the improved governance and sustainability of groundwater and related ecosystems in the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System
04 April 2019
The Preparation Project Grant (PPG) Validation Meeting of the Full-Sized UNDP/GEF-funded Project entitled “Implementation of the Strategic Action Program (SAP) of the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System: improving groundwater governance and sustainability of related ecosystems” – DIKTAS II, took place on 4 and5 April 2019, at the UNESCO Antenna Office in Sarajevo. During the meeting, national representatives and experts from the four project countries validated the final version of the Project Document and agreed to its submission to the GEF Secretariat. The meeting also served to present and discuss next steps, and recall the project preparation process.
The proposed project will be executed by UNESCO-IHP and aims to achieve joint sustainable and equitable use and protection of the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System. This vision perfectly adheres to the conclusions reached by the countries sharing the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System (DIKTAS), enshrined in the Strategic Action Program prepared by the countries and recently endorsed at ministerial level. Albania, Bosnia–Herzegovina and Montenegro, with the full support of Croatia, will cooperate in order to advance the sustainable management of the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System and its ecological resources, and will enhance their national and regional groundwater governance frameworks and institutional capacities.
The project also intends to assist the countries to:
1) Provide sufficient groundwater quantities in dry periods, particularly for the drinking water supply and maintenance of environmental flow.
2) Maintain and improve (where needed) the quality of groundwater in the Dinaric region.
3) Raise awareness and build capacities related to karst water and their dependent ecosystems.
This will be achieved, inter alia, by pilot testing conjunctive management solutions, and by consolidating transboundary cooperation and coordination.