On 21 September 2016, the High Level Panel on Water (HLPW), co-convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the President of the World Bank Group and consisting of 11 sitting Heads of State and Government and one Special Adviser, called for a fundamental shift in the way the world looks at water that will underpin a more sustainable approach to global development – as outlined in the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and in particular SDG 6 which focuses on ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
At the meeting of the HLPW, President of Hungary H.E. Mr. János Áder, member of the Panel, underlined that we have about 15 years to turn our water management sustainable before the problem would get out of control in the face of worsening climate change. To solve this looming challenge, we all have to join forces, share the knowledge and give way to water cooperation.
In its Action Plan, issued on 21 September 2016, the HLPW commits itself to take action on water, and calls upon fellow Heads of State and Government, and the world, to do the same with the aim to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The HLPW calls on building more resilient societies and economies – including reducing disaster risks – in the face of growing climate variability; on achieving universal access to safe drinking water and sanitation services; enabling cities to have and manage the water they need in an era of rapid urbanization; nurturing water and the environment; and investing in sustainable water infrastructure. We underpin this approach by promoting a strengthened collective governance of water; driving a water data revolution; and recognizing the unique social, economic and environmental value of the water that we have.
The Panel members also announced four initiatives for immediate action: increasing the attention to water in the climate action plan; stocktaking and calling for recommendations on financing opportunities; making an appeal to existing global networks to launch challenge events; and launching a multi-stakeholder dialogue about the principles and approaches to valuing water.
In a press conference after the meeting of the HLPW, President Áder, o behalf of the Panel, and alongside with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, the President of South Africa and Special Adviser Dr. Han Seung-soo, Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea, briefed the media on the tasks, activities and goals of the HLPW. The President highlighted that the faith of humanity depends on two, closely interlinked challenges, namely on how successfully we tackle the climate change and the water crisis that is looming large in an increasing number of countries across the world. This enormous task puts every country to test, and it is everyone’s responsibility to take action. During the next 20 months the Panel, through its specific initiatives, will call upon all actors to contribute and build on what they are already doing.
During his visit in New York, President János Áder had bilateral meetings with Petro Poroshenko, President of Ukraine, Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister of Australia, Jim Yong Kim World Bank Group President and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In their meeting, the Secretary-General thanked the President for his leadership role in the High-Level Panel on Water, and expressed his appreciation to the Government of Hungary for being the first EU Member State that finalized its domestic procedures to ratify the Paris Agreement on climate change.
