Why in Broadcast?

• The United Nations 2023 Water Conference (UN2023WC) held in New York on March 22-24. It was first such meeting on water after 46 years. The conference coincided with the mid-term comprehensive review of the International Decade for Action.

About Water Conference

• These types of international conferences serve to better align activities by governments, companies, NGOs, and funders around a few grand challenges.
• They also help countries learn from the experiences of others, transfer technology, and invest.

About last U.N. Water Conference

• The last U.N. Water Conference was held in 1977.
• It resulted in the first global ‘Action Plan’.
• It recognised that “all peoples, whatever their stage of development and social and economic conditions, have the right to have access to drinking water in quantities and of a quality equal to their basic needs.
• This declaration led to several decades of global funding and concerted effort to provide drinking water and sanitation for all.
• These actions substantially reduced the population without access to safe drinking water in much of the developing world.

Outcome of the conference

• The complexity of today’s water problems was reflected in the conference’s proceedings where fragmented discussions lead to no binding commitments.
• Some commitments announced at the event are:

• Technology – There were specific innovations in wastewater treatment or solar treatment of water in remote areas, and a number of proposals for incubation platforms, focused on water management.
• Data & Models – Before every large investment, potential impact is anticipated. Simulations are often important to do this, and they need large amounts of input data. Cost-effective approaches to datageneration included sensors and satellite data.
• Knowledge Sharing – Solutions to most of these problems already exist, but each region and country often reinvents the wheel. We need to accelerate cross-learning.
• Environmental, Social & Corporate Governance – The conference concluded that a big barrier to farmers and industries using water more efficiently is that they have no incentive. Specifically, farmers aren’t becoming more efficient or going pesticide-free unless consumers are willing to pay a premium for more sustainably produced goods.
• Civil Society – There were several platforms for collective action by civil society groups lobbying for changes in regulations.
• Capacity Building – Many people lack access to basic services because they are unable to advocate for themselves and because infrastructure projects are designed for and by powerful actors in society. Efforts are being made to offer help marginalised.