SPEECH BY PROF. JUDI WAKHUNGU – CABINET

SECRETARY,MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND

NATURAL RESOURCES DURING THE UNESCO MEETING OF

HIGH-LEVEL PANEL ON WATER SECURITY AND COOPERATION

IN AFRICA AT KENYA SCHOOL OF MONETARY STUDIES,

NAIROBI ON 11TH SEPTEMBER, 2013

 

 

Your Excellencies

Irina Bokova, Director-General, UNESCO

Royal Highness Prince El Hassan bin Talal of Jordan

Jan Eliasson, Deputy Secretary General, United Nations

Michel Jarraud, Chair of UN Water

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

 

 

It gives me pleasure and great honour to be with you today and to

participate in the ‘High-Level Panel discussion on Water Security and

Cooperation’ with a particular focus on Africa. It is also an honour to our

country Kenya to host this important event that is part of celebrating

this year designated the International Year of Water Cooperation as

declared by United Nations General Assembly at its 65th Session in 2010.

I have been informed that discussions during this session will include the

results of various consultation processes related to water cooperation,

notably the Africa Water Community consultations during the 3rd Meeting

of the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons held early this year in

Liberia.

 

 

We are indeed honoured; I recall that Nairobi again hosted the

‘Groundwater Governance Regional Consultation forum’ for the sub-

Saharan Africa region in May, 2012. These series of events

demonstrates the confidence UNESCO has in our continued partnership

while for us we take great pleasure in hosting these events. Please feel

most welcomed in Nairobi, Kenya!

Ladies and Gentlemen

Allow me to thank UNESCO for organizing this forum which appropriately

addresses Water Security and Cooperation that is also the theme for

Eight Phase of International Hydrological Programme.

 

 

Indeed a great number of water resources in Africa are shared by either

two or more countries, which require close cooperation among riparian

states in their sustainable management; otherwise the resources would

be potential sources of conflict, resulting to insecurity in the region. I

believe that the pronouncements and resolutions arrived at the end of

this session will contribute significantly to strengthening cooperation and

collaborations amongst riparian states and foster meaningful social and

economic development especially for those communities living in the

shared basins. In my view, peace and sustainable development are two

sides of the same coin.

 

 

Neither can truly exist without the other. Therefore, the onus is upon us

to pursue a culture of peace from the individual through the national,

regional and global levels. We do realize that none among us can any

longer act in isolation with regard to transboundary resources. Thus,

international cooperation, collaboration and partnership should be the

keywords. We must all willingly cooperate, especially in instituting

governance structure that mitigates potential conflict. Indeed

communication, education, science and culture are critical aspects for

peace-building, and therefore it is no coincidence that these are

UNESCO’s key attributes.

 

 

No wonder, therefore, that United Nations delegated the role of leading

the celebrations to mark 2013 International Year of Water Cooperation

to UNESCO, due to its expertise in water-related social-sciences.

We in Africa have faced numerous challenges ranging from under-

development, armed conflicts, refugees, effects of drought especially in

the Horn of Africa and floods in Southern Africa, malaria, AIDS and other

communicable diseases. What confound many is the paradox that Africa

is endowed with a wealth of human and natural resources on the one

hand, and extreme poverty of its people on the other.

 

 

More recently, Africa has also faced disproportionate threats to human

security – those brought about by terrorism, piracy, human and drug-

trafficking. The consequences of some of these challenges spill beyond

our region to the international arena and therefore we need to

strengthen international cooperation and collaboration in order to

minimize or eliminate altogether these threats to peace and

development. Therefore, we in Africa should be spared any further

sympathy but rather should be afforded opportunities to exercise

practical and sustainable socio-economic development options

appropriate to our environment.

 

 

I wish to inform you, Ladies and Gentlemen, that Kenya has already

been in the forefront of promoting peace, cooperation and collaboration,

stability and security in the region, through such initiatives as the Inter-

Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Nile Basin Initiative

(NBI), Lake Victoria Basin Commission (LVBC), Great Lakes Region and

African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW). For example, Kenya has

been at the forefront in promoting water cooperation with other

countries under the Nile Basin Initiative, which brings together all the

riparian countries sharing the Nile River Basin.

 

 

The Initiative recognizes the need to share equitably the Nile Basin

water resources as a basis for promoting cooperation among the riparian

states and this therefore leads to sustainable management of water

resources of the Nile Basin. Presently, Kenya and Tanzania on the one

hand, and Kenya and Uganda on the other are almost concluding the

development of a Memorandum of Understanding for the management

of shared water resources between these countries.

 

 

For the Kenya/Tanzania cooperative framework, the World renowned

Mara River basin is the shared water resources which if not sustainably

managed would result to serious negative impacts on the seasonal

migration of wildebeest across the river from Serengeti to Maasai Mara

National Parks.

Similarly, Kenya and Ethiopia are discussing the sustainable

management and sharing of benefits accrued from the Lake Turkana

Basin. Specifically, Ethiopia is developing a multi-purpose dam on the

Omo River that feeds Lake Turkana, under an arrangement whereby

 

 

when commissioned will see Ethiopia sell electric power generated from

the Hydro-dam to Kenya at an agreed fee.

I am informed that the above cooperative arrangements between

countries that share a common water resource are replicated across

Africa. However, the capacities of these joint Basin Management

organizations are at different levels. Every support that can be offered to

established efficient Basin Management organizations is welcomed from

those who have the expertise.

 

 

Ladies and Gentlemen

Most regions of the world are confronted with serious water challenges.

In Africa, nearly 75% of water supply is from groundwater. Poor

management of this resource is an obstacle to economic and social

development. It is for this reason that Kenya proposed the

establishment of a Regional Centre on Groundwater Resources

Education, Training and Research for East Africa – as UNESCO Category

2 Centre.

 

 

I am grateful to Member States for approving the establishment of the

centre during the 36th Session of the UNESCO General Conference in

2011. We now host a UNESCO category 2 centre specializing in

groundwater resources education, training and research, which will

promote cooperation on management of water resources in the IGAD

region and beyond. In addition, the centre will mobilize human and

financial resources to address challenges in groundwater resources

management, particularly in the understanding of groundwater regimes

of the region. The idea here is to eliminate any suspicion based on lack

of understanding of groundwater regimes by riparian countries.

 

 

The centre will also create awareness, not only among practitioners in

the water sector, but also to the policy makers and implementers, and

also at all levels of the society. It has been realized that communities

have a critical role in management of water resources; they are

therefore best suited to ‘police’ the rivers and other water resources in

their respective areas. We are soon rolling out advocacy programmes to

highlight development and management challenges as enumerated in

the national groundwater policy particularly for policy makers and

communities. In this regard, we will be approaching UNESCO and other

UNESCO Centres for assistance towards this end.

 

 

The IGAD region is dominated by Arid and semi-arid zones. This requires

that the meagre water resources are efficiently harnessed and utilized in

a sustainable manner. The pressure exerted on water resources,

especially during drought is a threat particularly to groundwater

resources. We all recall the devastating drought experienced in the IGAD

region in 2009 that affected over 12 million resulting to in a mass

exodus of refugees as well as an increased number of internally

displaced persons. Our people lost lives and numerous livestock, a

source of their livelihood in the region.

 

 

All the surface water resources dried up. It is upon this realization that,

in collaboration with UNESCO Regional Office in Nairobi, the Government

of Kenya has since April 2012 been implementing a project to

‘strengthen the capacity to combat drought and famine in the Horn of

Africa’ which is also being implemented in Ethiopia and Somali. The

objective of the programme is to tap the more resilient groundwater

resources for emergency water supply. Indeed this was in line with the

Nairobi Declaration adopted by the IGAD Heads of State during the

emergency summit on the Horn of Africa crisis held in September 2011.

 

 

This demonstrates a good example of what UNESCO in collaboration

with other agencies can do in response to the needs of its Member

States.

Further, the Government of Kenya appreciates the financial assistance

from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan for implementing the

programme. Very positive results are being realized from the

groundwater surveys being undertaken. I am informed that highly

potential and untapped groundwater bearing zones have been identified

both in the central Turkana County as well as in Ethiopia.

 

 

Currently exploration boreholes are being drilled and we look forward to

harnessing these huge underground water resources, which when

realized will alleviate the perennial water shortages experienced in the

region. We do sincerely thank UNESCO for spearheading this exercise,

and it is the intention of the Government to expand the programme to

cover all other Arid and Semi-arid regions of the country.

Ladies and Gentlemen

Since 2007 Kenya along with the other countries in the Horn of Africa,

has been undertaking a regional assessment of transboundary water

resources under project mapping assessment and management of

 

 

transboundary water resources in the IGAD sub-Region. The project

aims at providing the respective member states with a tool to better

understand the shared water resources with a view to eventually

undertake joint water resource management activities.

Finally, I am aware that the outcome of this meeting will inform key up-

coming international events, in particular the Budapest Water Summit;

the High-Level International Conference on Water Cooperation in

Tajikistan; and the Stockholm World Water Week; and High-Level Panel

on Water Disasters in Tokyo.

 

 

This, therefore, requires that we hold a very focused discussion and

thoroughly look at the various options available to us in order to come

up with tangible outcomes.

In conclusion, may I pay tribute once again to UNESCO’s long

experience in building a peace culture, both through the implementation

of UN declarations and through its own focussed programmes. I am

aware that the next two days will be dedicated to designing an

implementation strategy for the Eight Phase of International

Hydrological Programme. I have full confidence in the Task Force put

together to lead in the process.

 

 

In particular, I want to urge the Task Force members from Africa to be

aware of the diversity in the region and therefore design practical

programmes to cater for all sub-regions. I wish you all a successful

workshop.

THANK YOU.