GWOPA will participate in the UNCCD 16th session of the Conference of the Parties to advocate for the role of strong utilities in addressing land degradation and drought, including through WOPs.
4 December: Land Day
10:30–13:00 | Green Zone / Ministerial Pavilion 01
Leveraging water as an opportunity for green and resilient urban development session will explore how water can be leveraged as a resource to drive green and resilient urban development. The discussion will emphasize innovative strategies for integrating water management into urban planning to foster sustainability and resilience.
Concrete examples of successful restoration (river restoration, coastal restoration) and water-resilience initiatives will be also showcased, demonstrating how water can be at the heart of urban planning to create more sustainable, resilient, and vibrant communities. The session will also emphasize the actions required to create an enabling environment, such as through urban and territorial planning, legislation, finance, multilevel governance, that addresses systemic barriers and enhances community engagement for the implementation of integrated and inclusive urban water resilience initiatives.
6 December: Governance Day
13:30–12:00 | Blue Zone / Action Agenda
The session focuses on “Rights and Responsibilities: How to achieve equitable, inclusive, and sustainable water governance.” Participants will discuss frameworks for ensuring fair access to water resources, inclusivity in governance, and fostering sustainable solutions for water management.
Highlighted examples will include governance models that include gender mainstreaming; approaches to the water-food-energy-ecosystem nexus; and urban-rural linkages through the lens of sustainable production, consumption and wastewater re-use – drawing in each case on lessons learned and best practice models from around the world. Governance Day at UNCCD will highlight capacity development and awareness; how to build robust legal and policy frameworks; and the importance of partnership building in support of resource mobilization.
10 December: Resilience Day
13:15–14:45 | Green Zone / Pavilion 3
GWOPA will host the “Better Together: Collective capacity development to more effectively manage water to combat desertification and achieve SDG 6 ” session, highlighting collective capacity development to more effectively manage water resources. Discussions will focus on combating desertification and achieving SDG6 through collaborative and innovative approaches.
The panel will include representatives and partners from water utilities, development banks, the UN, government agencies, and civil society organisations. The Panel discussion will provide insights into key issues, including access to development financing, policy priorities and practices addressing water scarcity, capacity building and efficiency of service providers, learning and replicating from WOPS practice, and access to practical knowledge.
18:00–19:30 | Green Zone / MET-03
The second session on Resilience Day, “Unlocking the Potential of Wastewater: An approach towards circular economy to restore land,” will focus on promoting circular economy practices to restore degraded land. This session will showcase how innovative wastewater management strategies can enhance land restoration efforts and contribute to sustainability.
This session will bring together policymakers, practitioners and water and sanitation utilities to explore strategies for overcoming barriers to wastewater reuse in sustainable natural resource management, including land and water management. By unlocking the potential of wastewater, we can support the restoration of degraded lands and enhance efforts to combat desertification, in line with a circular economy approach.