Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

UN 2023 Water Conference Side Event
Pathway Forward:
Water-resilient, Sustainable, and Inclusive in Asia and the Pacific
22 March 2023, 13:15-14:30, Trusteeship UN HQ Inside

Partner organizations
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Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT), JapanThe Secretariat of the Headquarters for Water Cycle Policy of the Cabinet Secretariat
Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF) c/o Japan Water ForumTajikistan Government
Indonesian Government (Ministry of Public Works and Housing and Agency for
Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics (BMKG))
National Mission for Clean Ganga, Ministry of Jal Shakti, India
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)UNESCO Regional Office in Beijing / UNESCO HQ
UN-HABITATAsian Development Bank
Executive Committee of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (EC-IFAS)
Global Water Partnership (GWP) Southeast Asia / GWPOInternational Water Management Institute (IWMI)
Singapore PUB
Water Policy Group⚫ Background on the event
Representatives from Asia and the Pacific present how to put water at the core of a qualityoriented society through policy, investment, and partnership decisions to strengthen climate
resilience and socio-economic security. Government representatives from Japan, Indonesia,
India, and Tajikistan presented their voluntary commitments and actions in addressing water
security challenges for Climate, Resilience, and Environment in their countries. A panel ofleading experts and practitioners discussed what works, what lessons to learn, and how toreplicate and scale successes in addressing the opportunities and challenges.

⚫ Key Issues discussed
The panel discussion addressed three key issues in the water sector: governance for financing,1

Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

governance for cooperation, and inspiration and elevation of political will. The first issue
involves incentivizing and mobilizing financial capital from non-public sources and ensuring
investment aligns with the delivery of outcomes. The second issue focuses on the effectivenessof goal-orientated cooperation and engagement in enhancing progress. The third issue concerns
promoting cross-sectoral partnerships to address climate change and water-related disasters andmainstream policies and measures to achieve SDG6.

⚫ Key recommendations for action
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Many current water resources management and water-related disaster mitigation
infrastructures were designed without considering climate change, making it necessary to
re-evaluate their capacity to anticipate and mitigate the impact of climate change andassociated extreme events.
Prioritize building resilient infrastructure, improving data and information management,
and creating more cohesive institutional structures to address the challenges posed byclimate change and water-related issues.
Creating a safe space with manageable risks and implementing governance reforms thatenable more efficient business practices is essential to attract private sector investment.
Sharing success stories and best practices among countries in the Asia Pacific region is
crucial for making progress on SDG6. A governance framework that fosters cooperationand structured learning can help identify effective strategies and provide a platform forsharing knowledge. We must also focus on integrated water resource management,
considering the complex relationship between water, energy, and food, leveraging digitaltechnologies to promote policy coherence and inclusivity, and creating synergies withclimate goals, agriculture, and energy.
Prioritize integrating water-related issues by establishing a multi-stakeholder platform tofacilitate collaboration among various actors at different levels. These platforms canconvene dialogues, engage other sectors, and implement interventions on the ground.
Engage in multilateral processes to access relevant data, information, and policy support
to address water issues at the national level.
Effective governance is crucial for closing gaps and achieving water-related goals, andtechnology and infrastructure can help address some of the challenges. However, financing
and inclusive partnerships that account for all stakeholders' interests remain challenging.
We should also explore demand-side options to reduce water consumption and create amarket for sustainable water use that benefits all communities.
Community-based approaches, multisectoral processes, and inclusive partnerships canhelp tackle interrelated water issues. We must break down sectoral barriers, promotecollaboration between existing networks, and conduct research supporting transformativechanges.
Look for solutions that provide core benefits in water resource management, allowing for
concurrent climate adaptation and mitigation. It is particularly relevant in urban contexts,
where water-sensitive urban design principles can help manage floods and regulate
temperatures while providing habitats for fauna, improving water quality, reducing
pollution, and enhancing urban recreation spaces.

⚫ Water Action Agenda
Japan Kumamoto Initiative for Water - Promoting both climate change adaptation andmitigation measures and measures to improve people's basic living environment –(#SDGAction50308)

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Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

Indonesia
Integrated Data Framework and Services: High-quality data will enable better decisionmaking and planning.
Strengthening Early Warning ServicesThe provision of early warning for vulnerable societies will enable improved adaptation
actions.
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Last mile capacity building： Addressing the last mile ensures resilience.
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Sustainable Lake Management through Rehabilitation and Community Engagement
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Automated, Continuous, and Online Water Quality Monitoring (ONLIMO) for Effective
Water Pollution Control,Restoration of Peatland Ecosystem: Peatland Hydrological Restoration
Achieved safety-managed water and sanitation for households and beyond household
India
River Cities Alliance: Partnership for Developing International River Sensitive Cities:
National Mission for Clean Ganga, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India #SDG
Actio 51469
TajikistanDushanbe Water Process as a follow-up mechanism to the UN 2023 Water Conference #SDGAction51276
 Leadership in promoting glaciers' preservation issues at the global level, including throughthe platform of Water and Climate Coalition Leaders (WCCL) and the activities within
the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation, 2025,
 Hosting an International Conference dedicated to Glaciers' Preservation in Tajikistan in2025.
 Completion of the Water Sector Reform in the Republic of Tajikistan by 2025.
APWF:
Enhance political leaders' awareness and their political will to address water challenges in
Asia and the Pacific (#SDGAction50021)
Asian Development Bank(i)
Asia Pacific Water Resilience Initiative # SDGAction50325
ADB will mobilize $10 billion in climate change adaptation financing for the water sector in
Asia and the Pacific by 2030. This is in line with ADB's overall ambition of mobilizing $100
billion in climate finance using its own resources by 2030.
To do this, we are working with key partners including the Government of the Netherlands
which has pledged $20 million in grant financing to the ADB-administered Water Resilience
Trust Fund under the Water Financing Partnership Facility, in addition to grant funding fromother partners including the Government of Japan. Government of the Republic of Korea, andthe Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
(ii)
Accelerating Women’s Inclusion in Water Initiative
The Accelerating Women's Inclusion in Water Initiative aims to:3

Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat(i) better measure and track gendered dimensions of women’s water insecurity, and women’s
representation in water leadership and policymaking roles, including the need for enhanced
data collection efforts and establishing baselines;(ii) share transformative practices, which have good potential for scale-up and replication, toenhance women’s leadership and water resilience and security;(iii) Form a multi-stakeholder platform, the 'Inclusion Roundtable' to exchange ideas and views
on how to accelerate women's inclusion in water.
(iv) Promote investments in gender equity in the water sector.
(iii) Yellow River Ecological Corridor Program
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting the People's Republic of China (PRC)
Government to strengthen the sustainable management of natural capital in the PRC’s second
largest river basin. The Yellow River Ecological Corridor (YREC) Program was established in2020 adopting an innovative ecosystem management approach for water resourcesmanagement by considering a river basin as an ecological corridor. The YREC program builds
on three key principles: (i) protect the basin’s fragile ecological environment, (ii) address thesevere condition of the water resources (balancing use and preservation), and (iii) promote
high-quality green development and sustainable livelihoods. The YREC includes a program oflending, non-lending and policy interventions across four main thematic areas, such as: (i)natural resources management and biodiversity conservation, (ii) climate-resilient smart
agriculture, (iii) climate change mitigation and adaptation, and (iv) integrated urban-rural green
development.
UN-HABITAT:
UN-Habitat has a $100 million portfolio in the Asia-Pacific region, focusing on building
climate resilience and sustainability in the water sector. This includes work such as the
Adaptation Fund-funded project in Lao PDR, which builds resilience in small-scale water
infrastructure in 189 villages or work ensuring climate-resilient water infrastructure along the
economic corridors of the Greater Mekong region. UN-Habitat works with a community-based
approach and builds capacity in entities from the regional and national to the local levels.
UNESCO:UNESCO Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) Phase IX (2022-2029)
GWP Southeast Asia: Integrated Water Security Open Program (#SDGAction50408)
The Integrated Water Security Open Program (IWSOP) is an online platform, aims tomobilize action and activity in support of achieving water security goals and theimplementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the provision of a spacefor sharing of knowledge and expertise among different actors that engage in multi-stakeholder
water resources management. It enables real-time sharing of information, alignment of efforts,
periodic updates of contribution and the establishment of a strategic and integrated approach
for action and investment in the water sector leading to socioeconomic and environmental
benefits in the region through increased investment in appropriate infrastructure, empowermentof marginalized or vulnerable groups, and more sustainable use of resources.
The platform focuses on action mapping related to water security. Each registeredaction will be linked to relevant water security category (which are derived from the global
indicator related to water security, such as Asian Water Development Outlook and SDGs). This
will enable to facilitate learning exchange between actions. Open program aims to also provide

4Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

assistance to develop annual multistakeholder contribution report on water security
achievement and ultimately to facilitate the alignment and consolidation of water security
program in the country.
IWMI: Transformative Futures for Water Security

Ref: Program
Session Introduction
Ms. Yumiko Asayama, APWF Secretariat c/o Chief Manager of Japan Water Forum
Opening remarks
Mr. Kazufumi Ohnishi, Mayor of Kumamoto City c/o host city of the 4th Asia-Pacific Water
SummitWelcoming Remarks
Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, the Special Envoy of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan to theWater and Climate Coalition Leaders, Chairman of the Executive Committee of theInternational Fund for Saving the Aral Sea
Showcase presentations from several national governments in Asia and the Pacific & ADB• Asian Development Bank: Mr. Woochong Um, Managing Director General• Japanese Government: Mr. Toshikazu TOKIOKA, Director for International
Coordination of River Engineering, Water and Disaster Management Bureau, Ministryof Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan• Indonesia Government: Prof. Ir. Dwikorita Karnawati, Head of Indonesian Agency for
Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics• India Government: Mr. G. Asok Kumar, Director General, National Mission for Clean
Ganga, Ministry of Jal Shakti
Moderator: Ms. Changhua Wu, Vice Chair of the APWF Governing Council
Panel discussion: What works for improvement, replication, and scale-up
Panelists:• Asian Development Bank: Dr. Thomas Panella, Director - Environment, Natural
Resources, and Agriculture Division - East Asia Department• ESCAP: Ms. Katinka Weinberger, Chief, Environment and Development Policy• UN-HABITAT: Dr. Graham Alabaster, Chief Geneva Office, Office of The Executive
Director, UN-Habitat• UNESCO: Dr. Sarantuyaa Zandaryaa, Programme Specialist, Division of Water Sciences,
Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP), UNESCO HQ• IWMI: Dr. Mark Smith, Director-General• Global Water Partnership: Dr. Yumiko Yasuda, Senior Network Officer for Asia
• Water Policy Group: Anthony Slatyer, Consultant on Water Policy and Governance• Singapore: Dr. Winston Tseon Loong CHOW, Associate Professor, Singapore
Management University
Moderator: Changhua Wu, Vice Chair of the APWF Governing Council

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Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

Wrap-up and Closing remarks
Changhua Wu, Vice Chair of the APWF Governing Council◆ Speakers' talk summary:
Mr. Kazufumi Ohnishi, Mayor of Kumamoto City c/o host city of the 4th Asia-PacificWater Summit, delivered his opening remarks. He sincerely appreciated the thoughtful efforts
to organize the session on the future of water safety in the Asia Pacific region. Recognizing thecritical role of water as a vital resource, he underscored the potential threat it poses to humansafety, especially in light of the growing environmental issues related to water shortages,
pollution, and disasters stemming from global warming. He acknowledged the need forinternational cooperation to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, emphasizing thesignificance of the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit held in Kumamoto City and the resulting
Kumamoto Declaration. Moreover, he stressed the importance of fostering partnerships andcollaboration to develop sustainable solutions and actively engaging the younger generation insolving water issues. With optimism and hope, he expressed his confidence in advancing efforts
to address water issues through this session.
Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, the Special Envoy of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan
to the Water and Climate Coalition Leaders, Chairman of the EC-IFAS, highlights thevulnerability of Central Asia to climate change and its negative impact on the region's waterrelated natural disasters. The melting of glaciers and ice sheets due to climate change poses athreat of glacial lake outburst floods and water shortages in the mid to long term. In response,
on the initiative of the Republic of Tajikistan, on December 14, 2022 the UN General Assembly
adopted a resolution declaring 2025 the International Year of Glaciers Preservation. The ECIFAS and the governments of Central Asia are implementing projects to minimize negative
impacts and reduce the risks of water-related disasters, such as the Climate Adaptation
Mitigation Program for the Aral Sea and the Central Asia Hydrometeorological Modernization
Project. The region's countries adopted Aral Sea Basin Program (ASBP-4) in 2021, which
includes projects dedicated to climate resilience and sustainable water resource management.
He stressed the need to continue collective action and strengthen infrastructure, capacity, andcooperation to overcome current and future challenges and threats.
Mr. Woochong Um, Managing Director General, ADB, shared ADB's commitment. The
ADB has a long-term strategy called the ADB Strategy 2030, which aims to build a prosperous,
inclusive, resilient, and sustainable future for Asia and the Pacific region. The ADB has also
set out a directional guide for its water sector operations, which aims to address water security
challenges and achieve the ADB Strategy 2030 objectives. The ADB aims to mobilize at least$200 million of grant financing for its water sector operations between 2021 and 2030. It alsoseeks to ensure that at least 90% of its annual committed financing for water sector operations
promotes effective gender mainstreaming up to 2030. The ADB is actively building capacity
and sharing knowledge in the water sector through Asia and the Pacific Water Resilience Hub.
The ADB hosted its first multi-stakeholder roundtable on accelerating inclusion in water inAugust 2022, with like-minded stakeholders committed to advancing the inclusion agenda in6

Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

the water sector.
Mr. Toshikazu Tokioka, Director for International Coordination of River Engineering,
Water and Disaster Management Bureau, MLIT Japan, presented follow-up actions for
Kumamoto Initiative for Water. Japan announced the Kumamoto Initiative for Water at last
year's 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit and has since been proactively contributing to solving
water-related social issues in the Asia-Pacific region. It includes developing quality
infrastructure, promoting public-private partnerships, and fostering digitalization andinnovation as tools for sustainable development and forming a resilient society and economy.
An intergovernmental cooperation structure supports the initiative. Practical actions include
satellite observation for real-time precipitation monitoring, predicting future rainfall withground observation data and computer simulation, flood risk mapping using satellite andground observation data, and the wise use of existing dams for both flood control andhydropower capacity. Other aspects of the initiative involve developing quality sewage water
systems and improving agriculture and rural development infrastructure. Japan has committed
to providing approximately 500 billion yen (equivalent to 3.8 billion USD) in financial
assistance over the next five years.
Prof. Ir. Dwikorita Karnawati, Head of Indonesian Agency for Meteorology Climatology
and Geophysics, presented Water Data Governance sharing Indonesia's water action agenda.
Firstly, she referred to the World Meteorological Organization's State of the Climate report thatclimate change is at a tipping point due to rising greenhouse gas concentrations andaccumulated heat. The impact on global water resources and food security is evident, with more
frequent and severe extreme events like floods and droughts. Indonesia supports the formationof the International Science Policy Platform for Water. It suggests integrating entire water cycle
data into global data and information governance to achieve sustainable water resource
management and water for shared prosperity. Current water resources management and waterrelated disaster mitigation infrastructures were designed before the issue of climate change,
making it necessary to re-evaluate their capacity to anticipate and mitigate the impact of climatechange and associated extreme events. Robust observation data is critical for reliable analysis,
prediction, and projection to support the design of water infrastructures.
Mr. G. Asok Kumar, Director General, National Mission for Clean Ganga, Ministry of Jal
Shakti, Government of India, mentioned his visit to the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit,
Kumamoto, 2022 where the Kumamoto Declaration was announced. He reiterated the supportof the Indian government for three principles of the declaration.
Mr. G. Asok Kumar introduced the Namami Gange Mission, which is a flagshipprogram launched by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. The mission focuses ona holistic and integrated approach to the conservation, protection, and rejuvenation of River
Ganga, which is spread across the northwestern part of India and home to about 43% of thecountry's population. The Namami Gange mission, announced in 2014 and launched in 2015,
has a budgetary outlay of Rs 20,000 crores. At present, 424 projects have been sanctioned worth
Rs 32,898 crores. The mission comprises five strategic areas of intervention, including Nirmal
Ganga, Aviral Ganga, Jan Ganga, Gyan Ganga, and Arth Ganga, with six verticals ofintervention, including zero budget natural farming, monetization of reuse of sludge and treatedwastewater, promotion of livelihood generation opportunities, increased public participation,
the revival of cultural heritage and tourism, and institutional building. The introduction ofHybrid Annuity based PPP Model (HAM) and One City One Operator Model has ushered aparadigm shift in the Indian wastewater sector and contributed to water security. In HAM, with
40% of CAPEX is being paid during construction and 60% with interest by a 15-year annuity
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Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

with separate payment for operation & maintenance (O&M) bringing a paradigm shift frompayment for construction to Performance Linked Payments.
The mission aims to restore the riverine ecosystem, including pollution abatement, solidand liquid waste management, biodiversity, afforestation, wetland conservation, agribusiness,groundwater management, etc. Recently, the decade of 2021-2030 has been declared as the
Decade of Ecosystem Restoration by the United Nations General Assembly, positioning therestoration of ecosystems as a major nature-based solution for achieving Sustainable
Development Goals and other national priorities. Through the mission, India significantly
restored polluted stretches of river, improved river water quality, and improved its biodiversity.
Namami Gange has been recognized as one of the top 10 World Restoration Flagships to revive
the natural world under the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration of theConference on Biodiversity.

◆ Panel discussion question
Ms. Changhua Wu, vice-chair of the APWF Governing Council, moderated the panel
discussion. The organizations of panelists have played a crucial role in advancing water
security, sustainability, and inclusiveness in the Asia Pacific region. We want to listen to yourthoughts and discuss what comes next after the Kumamoto Declaration. Our region's leadersand stakeholders are committed to financing, governance, inclusiveness, innovation. We haveseen successful showcases of actions on the ground, and now it's time to focus on scaling up
our efforts. We would like to hear from each of you about your institutional priorities, what
you are driving, and what you need to succeed in achieving our common goals.
Dr. Thomas Panella, Director - Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture
Division - East Asia Department, ADB responded:
To attract private sector investment, we must create a safe space with manageable perceived
risks, as investors will only put their money where they see a return. However, creating an
enabling environment for this change is not straightforward, and we must ensure that the money
is being used effectively. It's important to recognize that private sector finance is not just aboutmoney, but also governance reforms that the entities receiving the finance need to implement
in order to do business more efficiently.
In the context of water supply, it's important to note that it provides both public andprivate benefits. Still, these benefits are often undervalued due to weak enabling environments
and a lack of well-prepared projects. Private finance tends to be short-term, while demand forwater infrastructure investments is long-term, and there can be a lack of information andanalysis. Therefore, it's crucial to create a regulatory environment that is safe and coherent,with accountability mechanisms in place, and to ensure that there are adequate capital markets,
tariff regulations, and standardized methodologies for assessing projects.
At the same time, the entities need to change their business practices, as demonstrated by theexamples of the Climate Resilient Smart Water Infrastructure Project in the PRC and the selfsovereign lending project in Vietnam. Both projects required adopting climate resilient
activities, demonstrating climate change adaptation planning, innovative technologies, andgender and safeguard requirements. The ADB supported these projects with grant resources
and worked with the entities to become creditworthy, including conducting shadow credit
ratings.
Overall, the public sector has a significant role in engendering these changes and creatinga permanent and sustainable impact through partnerships with the private sector.

8Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

Ms. Katinka Weinberger, Chief, Environment and Development Policy, ESCAP
responded:
ESCAP recently launched its 2023 SDG6 profile, which reveals that we are falling behind on
several SDGs, including SDG6. As a positive trend, the report also highlights that somepolitical leaders and countries in the region are making above-average progress on SDG6, withmany exciting innovations happening. To share these success stories and exchange bestpractices, governance for cooperation is crucial, because it allows us to take a structured
approach to learn from what is working well within the region and provide a platform to learn
from those best experiences.
In terms of partnerships, the Asia Pacific Water Forum, and the Asia Pacific Forum on
Sustainable Development, coordinated by the ESCAP, are examples of successful platforms
that bring together diverse stakeholders to promote cooperation and share the best practices on
SDGs.
In terms of going forward, these platforms, as well as the recent UN-Water regional water
discussion group, have emphasized the need for the following: The need for a stronger focus on integrated water resource management, considering
the complex relationship between water, energy, and food, and the importance of
creating synergies with climate goals, agriculture, and energy
 Digital technologies, such as sensors, data analytics, and artificial intelligence, can also
play a critical role in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of water and sanitation
management. However, we also need new ways of using digital technologies to enhance
governance for cooperation and integration, ensuring equitable, sustainable, and cleanwater for all. Having granular data available can enhance water security and access,
improve transparency and accountability, and help with financing mechanisms.
 Finally, we need a stronger focus on policy coherence, synergies, and legal frameworks
for effective governance, capacity building, and inclusive governance approaches thatinvolve marginalized communities and civil society organizations. Training institutions
working with such communities to provide participatory and equitable approaches is
crucial to ensure that water and sanitation services are delivered equitably.
Dr. Graham Alabaster, Chief Geneva Office, Office of The Executive Director, UNHABITAT, responded:
By 2050, it is projected that 70% of the world's population will live in urban agglomerations,many of which have yet to be built. This presents a significant opportunity for urban planningto be mainstreamed in order to build resilience and ensure access to basic services, such as
water. It is crucial to strike a balance between physical infrastructure and the governance ofthat infrastructure to build resilience in crises, such as floods or outbreaks. Community-based
approaches and engagement are particularly important for smaller urban centers where local
authorities may be constrained. Diversification in funding, particularly towards non-publicfinancing and public-private partnerships, is needed. Collaboration and inter-regional exchangeof good practices should also be considered to learn from successful systems around the world.
While there are cost-effective ways to gather data, there is a need for capacity building tointerpret the data and make informed decisions effectively. Multisectoral partnerships andcommunity engagement are key to addressing competing uses for water and promoting
resilience. At the local level, municipal and civil administrations must mobilize the capacitythat exists amongst communities to optimize community engagement and promote resilience.

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Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

Ms. Changhua Wu, the moderator, ask the following questions. We can see thatnumerous city networks, such as C40 and ECLEI, are operating globally, and the agenda they
pursue has been established for over a decade or even a couple of decades. However, we stillsee gaps in terms of linkage and collaboration. At UN-Habitat, we work with all stakeholders,
not just government agencies, and we believe that certain aspects of the landscape require more
attention. Specifically, a few points need to be adequately addressed. What is missing regarding
effective collaboration and establishing strategies to address these gaps?
Dr. Alabaster responded that the issue with most city-level networks is that they tend to
focus on specific sectors. For instance, C40 mainly focuses on climate, while other networks
are concerned with health or other areas. However, the reality is that all these issues areinterconnected and require a collaborative effort to address them. Therefore, breaking downthese sectoral barriers and promoting cross-fertilization between existing networks is crucial.
By doing so, we can develop more efficient and practical approaches and design new systems
to tackle multiple issues simultaneously.
Dr. Sarantuyaa Zandaryaa, Programme Specialist, Division of Water Sciences,
Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP), UNESCO HQ, responded:
The region and its countries face various water-related challenges, including water-related
disasters that previous speakers have highlighted. However, I would like to draw attention to
two additional issues. Firstly, water pollution has a devastating impact on both freshwater andmarine ecosystems in Asia, with some of the most polluted rivers in the world located in thisregion. Pollution is considered one of the triple environmental crises facing humanity today,
alongside climate change and biodiversity loss. These interconnected challenges make it crucial
to reduce water pollution in Asia, especially plastic and microplastic pollution. Rivers are theprimary transport pathways for pollutants, including microplastics, to coastal waters andmarine systems. Therefore, it is vital to adopt source-to-sea and transdisciplinary approaches
to address pollution across the land, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems. Suchapproaches offer opportunities for partnerships and collaborations among freshwater andmarine science communities and practitioners.
Secondly, ensuring water supplies for human needs to support food production for theregion’s growing population while maintaining ecosystem integrity is a significant challenge.
The Asia-Pacific region is home to more than half of the world's population of 8 billion, andthe number of mega-cities in the region is expected to increase significantly in the coming
decades. To ensure water security in human settlements, UNESCO is implementing a multiyear, multi-country project funded by the Korean government. The project focuses on two
regions (Africa and Asia) and aims to support water security in ten Asian countries, including
ongoing projects in Bhutan and India. The projects support water quality monitoring to ensure
water security in Bhutan and the establishment of an integrated water database at the municipal
level in India, which is critical for data-driven integrated urban water management. The Ninthphase of IHP of UNESCO, dedicated to the overall theme of “Science for a water-secure world
in a changing environment”, provides an opportunity for collaboration between countries
within and across different regions.
Finally, it is essential to emphasize the needs of small island developing countries in thiscontext.
Dr. Mark Smith, Director-General of IWMI, responded:
The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) is a research organization
headquartered in Sri Lanka, with additional offices throughout Asia and Africa. We pride
ourselves on being a "research for development" organization, meaning that we conduct

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Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

research with a focus on achieving impactful results through partnerships. At the core of ourwork is the challenge of conducting good research, fostering innovation, and scaling that
innovation for the greatest impact. In recent years, there has been an increasing dialogue within
the research community about whether we are focused on the right priorities in relation to water
security and whether we are delivering against stakeholders' future priorities as challenges towater security continue to unfold.
Our research is driven by stakeholder priorities and is intended to support
transformative changes in water security. To achieve this goal, we need youth champions,actors from government, business, science communities, and inclusive development sectors toalign around these missions and bring their respective tools and expertise to the table. We
believe that if we can foster convergence among these groups, including the research andinnovation community, we can deliver results that address stakeholder priorities better.
Looking ahead, research must be positioned at the center of systems change,
particularly about the significant challenges facing water and climate. To achieve this, we needto conduct research differently and better adapt our approach to supporting transformativechanges. We need high-ambition missions to advance science-based actions for water security.
We are committed to driving this change through our Transformative Futures for Water Security(TFWS) initiative and believe that continued support and recognition of the critical role ofresearch will be essential to achieving success.
Dr. Yumiko Yasuda, Senior Network Officer for Asia, Global Water Partnership
Organization, discussed the need for cooperation among various actors at different levels to
address water and related problems. To date, many organizations have worked solely on thewater sector, and we need to prioritize integration to address water-related issues. She suggests
using a multi-stakeholder platform, such as the Global Water Partnership (GWP), which has
been operational for the past 25 years and has partners from various sectors voluntarily engaged
in the partnership. We can bring partners together, convene dialogues, and provide
opportunities for sectoral engagement. She invites partners to use the GWP platform toimplement interventions on the ground and engage with different sectors. The GWP also
initiates an Integrated Water Security Open Program to provide a platform for partners toregister their activities on the ground and make the data available to others. It will offer a onestop shop to understand what each organization is doing and what is happening in the fields.
She emphasized the importance of collaboration with other partners to make this program work.
Anthony Slatyer, Consultant on Water Policy and Governance, discussed what works for
improving, replicating, and scaling up efforts. He shared the results of a survey by the Water
Policy Group of the opinions of Ministers and other national water leaders of 92
countries. They say the highest risks their countries face are climate change, and related issuesof droughts and floods, as well as increasing demand for water. Their greatest challenges arewith infrastructure, inadequate data and information and the fragmentation of institutions
within the government. They think multilateral processes can best help them by providing dataand information on water relevant at the national level, as well as policy support. Mr Slatyer
also explained Water Policy Group’s new project, Global Scaffolding for Water Policy . This
is to develop fundamental principles around the most challenging policy issues, such as water
pricing and allocation, to make it easier for ministers to make difficult political decisions.

11Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, Japan Water Forum c/o APWF Secretariat

Singapore: Dr. Winston Tseon Loong CHOW, Associate Professor, Singapore
Management University responded:
I have two key takeaways from the IPCC climate assessments related to improving replicationand scaling up of action. The first is that there are gaps in successful implementation for
numerous water-related SDGs, including SDG6 and 11, which also impact climate adaptation,
mitigation, and resilience. Effective governance in water resource management is critical toclosing these gaps and achieving these goals. Fortunately, technology and infrastructure areavailable to address some of these challenges, and knowledge transfer is happening rapidly.
However, financing these measures remains a challenge, and inclusive partnerships that
account for the interests of all stakeholders are needed to move forward. It's essential not tooverlook demand-side options to reduce water demand and build a market for sustainable water
consumption that includes vulnerable communities.
The second point is to look for solutions that provide core benefits in water resource
management that allow for both climate adaptation and mitigation concurrently. This isparticularly relevant in urban contexts, where water-sensitive urban design principles can help
manage floods and regulate temperatures while providing habitats for fauna, improving water
quality, reducing pollution, and enhancing urban recreation spaces. The IPCC's synthesis reportprovides excellent guidance on achieving climate resilience and water resource management.

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