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UNESCO conference focuses on how to prevent conflicts over shared waters

06/12/2021
06 - Clean Water and Sanitation

The ISARM 2021 Conference on Transboundary aquifers: Challenges and the Way Forward will provide an opportunity to debate new solutions to address the growing competition for shared waters, with emphasis on groundwater, that invisible component of our planet’s water cycle which runs beneath our feet on 6-9 December 2021.

The conference will count with more than 200 speakers and around 1,000 participants from around the world, several high-level panels and 18 technical sessions.

Since the conference will be taking place shortly after COP26, it will offer an opportunity to reaffirm commitments to common goals, such as that of adapting to climate change by fostering cooperation on aquifers that cross political boundaries. This cooperation will take place at the nexus of science, policy and governance.

Reaffirming some these goals in a recent media outing, UNESCO’s Assistant Director General for Science, Dr. Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, said “The importance of cooperation in managing shared water resources in a world where demand is rapidly growing cannot be underestimated”.

Around the world, there are 286 transboundary river and lake basins and more than 500 transboundary aquifer systems. These transboundary water systems are shared by 153 countries. Transboundary waters account for 60% of the world’s freshwater flows and over 40% of the world’s population relies on them for their livelihood. This makes cooperation between countries essential to ensure that everyone enjoys water security and that every drop counts.

Follow the event on Twitter by following @unescoWATER and  #ISARM2021