Global water experts send letter of concern to the UN Secretary General
Water users, civil society and researchers came together to raise serious concerns about the accountability, rigour and ambition of the UN Water conference- culminating in a letter to the UN Secretary General and conference organisers.
Over 100 water experts from across five continents signed the letter- you can read the full draft of their concerns and recommendations here:
The organisers of the letter- including Water Witness, the African Civil Society Network for Water and Sanitation, Shahidi wa Maji Tanzania, the Kenya Water and Sanitation Network, the Tanzania Water and Sanitation Network and the Water Integrity Network- have now written to all the signatories:
Thankyou! Open letter to UN Secretary General calling for accountability, rigour and ambition at UN Water 2023
On behalf of ANEW, Shahidi wa Maji, KeWaSNET, TaWaSNet, Water Witness and the Water Integrity Network, we write to thank you for your support in signing the open letter of concern to the UN Secretary General. In just a few hours last Thursday your decisive response meant we were able to mobilise over 100 influential voices from five continents to call for greater accountability, rigour and ambition in the outcomes of UN 2023 Water Conference and the Water Action Agenda.
The letter responds to the failure of the United Nations and Member States to address the global water crisis with the seriousness it deserves. The 700 voluntary commitments risk fragmentation and disjointed delivery. The absence of systematic review of the evidence means we risk forgetting the lessons and repeating the mistakes of the past. The lack of balanced participation silences those most affected, and leaves the agenda open to undue influence by powerful beneficiaries of the status quo. The dearth of any meaningful accountability, or concrete, binding outcomes is simply not good enough, and represents a dereliction of duty to those who bear the brunt of the water crisis.
Your support meant that we were able to get the letter to the UN Secretary General, the Conference Presidents (the King of the Netherlands and President of Tajikistan), the convenors of the event and the ‘Interactive Dialogues’, as well as the media, before the close of the event. We are still tracking its impact but so far, we know that:
· Henk Ovink, the Dutch Water Envoy and driving force behind the conference responded within minutes to say, ‘This is great, and indeed only strengthens our call’. He asked for suggestions on how to embed accountability and forwarded the letter to the USA and Singapore, Chairs of Interactive Dialogue 5.
· Our requests were explicitly referenced and advocated for in the closing session via the speech of the UK’s Minister Lord Goldsmith. As part of the formal recommendations coming out of the dialogue, he said: ‘We still need to go much further to deliver accountability for all, for a step change in performance. I urge you, Secretary General to heed the urgent call from civil society in their open letter for accountability, rigour and ambition in the outcomes of the UN Water Conference.’
· Our letter featured prominently in the Guardian’s Analysis of the event. This has been widely re-circulated as one of the few articles on the conference in the global media.
We are not claiming attribution for the following outcomes, but we note that:
Interactive Dialogue 5 - on the future of the Water Action Agenda - concluded with a need to ensure coherence and accountability for commitments and actions, through evaluation at future meetings in 2025 and 2028.
The establishment of an independent intergovernmental scientific panel to support the new UN Special Envoy on Water with rigorous evidence featured as one of the formal outcomes of the event.
We will keep looking at ‘if and how’ your voices have influenced the outcomes and will keep you posted. Whilst we would have liked a more participatory process in authoring the letter and getting consensus on its main asks, we also saw a need to act quickly to articulate the unease shared by so many, and to bring together a constructive critique of the event.
Through this initiative we have seen the power of our collective voice. We’d therefore like to keep in touch, and to strengthen this network, connect it with others, and to work with you all to amplify our demand for accountability, rigour and ambition. There are opportunities for this ahead: the High-Level Panel meeting in July, Climate CoP 28 in UAE in November, and follow up meetings to the Water Action Agenda.
We hope to organise a reflection and planning meeting in the coming months and will be in touch with further details. In the mean-time, please let us know if you can help more directly, can connect us to other networks, or if you wish to co-lead this effort. We are fully committed to ‘shifting the power’ and addressing the systemic inequalities that beset international development and water, and so warmly welcome your leadership, challenge and genuine collaboration.
Once again, thank you for enabling us all to make such an important and influential mark at this historic event.
Yours in solidarity for a more just global water future,
Nick Hepworth, Director, Water Witness International
Sareen Malik, Executive Secretary, African Civil Society Network for Water and Sanitation
Barbara Schreiner, Executive Director, Water Integrity Network
Malesi Shivaji, Executive Director, Kenya Water and Sanitation Network
Abel Degenge, Executive Director, Shahidi wa Maji, Tanzania
Eng. Herbert Kashililah, Chair, Tanzania Water and Sanitation Network