Council Proposes Increased Water Investment

Council Proposes Increased Water Investment

The General Assembly of the African Ministers' Council on Water has urged member countries to advance mechanisms for increased investment in water and its resources. 

The Council said member countries should use non-traditional innovative financing to achieve such an increase.

In order to achieve this, a meeting of African Ministers of Water and Finance has been planned for March 2011. The meeting aims at mobilising strong political support for greater investment in water and drawing global attention to financing issues in the sector. 

The General Assembly commended efforts at providing verifiable data on water and sanitation on the continent and also applauded the provision of Water Atlas and Snap Shot Report on Water and Sanitation in Africa .   

It urged African governments to adopt the publications and implement the recommendations on water as part of the strategies to meet the MDGs targets on water and sanitation.   

The Council also stressed the need for effective implementation of the commitment of the African heads of state on water to ensure the actualisation of Africa 's Water Vision by 2025 and other ministerial declarations on water.  

On the Africa Groundwater Commission, it emphasised the need for countries and development partners to extend all possible technical and financial support needed to bring the commission to full operation.  

Commending the development partners for their continued support to the Council and their intervention programmes on water and sanitation in Africa, it urged them to continue to aid  Africa 's efforts in managing its water resources and for member countries to provide clean sanitation on the continent.  

The decisions were reached at a conference of the ministers in Addis Ababa , the Third Africa Water Week forum.

NAN/Yinka