INFORMAL WORKSHOP WITH AFRICAN STATES ON THE WORLD’S LARGE RIVERS INITIATIVE AND FOCUS AFRICA

The first informal workshop on the World’s Large Rivers Initiative - Focus Africa was held online on 11 July 2022, from 14:00 to 15:30 CET. It was organized jointly by the Permanent Delegation of Austria to UNESCO, the UNESCO Chair for Integrated River Research and Management (AT) and the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) Secretariat.

OBJECTIVE

The workshop aimed at introducing the World’s Large Rivers Initiative (WLRI) and its latest state of play to African countries that are bound by large African rivers. In that context, its purpose was to explain the WLRI’s added value for African member states as a contribution to our overall goal of the achievement of the Agenda 2030 on Sustainable Development and the Agenda 2063 – The Africa We Want.

The informal event created a room for discussion to determine possible interest and establish how to take the initiative forward on the African continent, based on the voluntary collaboration of the respective river basin states.  

FOLLOW-UP PROCESS

Further steps will follow to establish a framework for a global status report on the world’s large rivers.

The Permanent Delegation of Austria to UNESCO and the UNESCO Chair for Integrated River Research and Management (AT) can be contacted regarding further information and a potential collaboration on a large river status report.

CONTACTS

Permanent Delegation of Austria to UNESCO:

UNESCO Chair for Integrated River Research and Management (AT):