Global Water Partnership

The Global Water Partnership (GWP) is an international network established to encourage integrated water resources management, commonly abbreviated as IWRM. Its central premise is that water should not be managed through isolated administrative or sectoral systems. Instead, rivers, aquifers, wetlands, infrastructure, ecosystems, households, farms, industries and public institutions should be considered as parts of an interconnected system. GWP works to advance this approach by bringing together public authorities, United Nations agencies, development banks, research institutions, professional associations, civil-society organisations and private-sector participants. The organisation emerged from a long-running international debate about the limits of fragmented water management. Its intellectual and policy background includes the 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment, the 1977 United Nations Water Conference in Mar del Plata and the 1992 International Conference on Water and the Environment in Dublin. The Dublin meeting articulated principles that became influential in the development of IWRM, including the treatment of freshwater as a finite and vulnerable resource, the importance of participatory management, the recognition of women’s central role in water management and the economic significance of water. These ideas were subsequently reflected in Chapter 18 of Agenda 21, adopted at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. GWP was founded in 1996 with support from the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. It initially operated as a unit associated with Sida. In 2002, the organisation was established under international law as the Global Water Partnership Organisation, while continuing to use Global Water Partnership and GWP as its principal public identity. Its secretariat is based in Stockholm. GWP operates through a decentralised network rather than as a conventional centrally managed corporation. The network includes Regional Water Partnerships and accredited Country Water Partnerships, which convene stakeholders and develop activities suited to local and regional conditions. The reference material describes 13 regional partnerships, 68 accredited country partnerships and more than 3,000 institutional partners in over 170 countries. Regional and country partnerships have their own governance and manage many activities directly, while the global secretariat provides support in areas such as governance, finance, communications, programme planning and administration. Its principal work consists of capacity building and knowledge sharing. GWP publishes guidance, organises workshops and training, supports meetings and peer exchanges, and maintains the IWRM Toolbox. The toolbox is a free online resource containing approaches, references and case material intended to help practitioners examine water-governance problems, compare options and prioritise action. GWP also works through thematic initiatives on subjects including water and climate, flood management and drought management. Strategic cooperation has involved organisations such as the United Nations Development Programme’s Cap-Net, UN-Water, the United Nations Environment Programme and the UNEP-DHI Centre. GWP is therefore best understood as a policy, knowledge and convening network rather than a commercial product brand. Its influence comes from connecting institutions, translating IWRM principles into practical guidance, supporting national and regional dialogue and encouraging water decisions that account for social, economic and environmental objectives.

The Global Water Partnership developed from the international search for a more coordinated and sustainable approach to water management. During the second half of the twentieth century, governments and international organisations increasingly recognised that conventional, sector-by-sector arrangements could not adequately address interconnected problems such as water pollution, competing demands, ecosystem degradation, drought and flood risk. International conferences helped establish the policy environment in which a more integrated model could emerge. The 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment placed environmental protection on the international agenda. The 1977 Mar del Plata conference gave water a more prominent place in international development policy. A particularly important step came at the 1992 International Conference on Water and the Environment in Dublin. The Dublin Principles promoted the understanding of freshwater as finite and vulnerable, called for participatory governance, highlighted the role of women in water management and treated water as having economic as well as social and environmental value. The principles influenced the water provisions of Agenda 21, the programme adopted at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. Chapter 18 of Agenda 21 incorporated an integrated approach to the development, management and use of freshwater resources. Against this background, the Global Water Partnership was created in 1996 with support from the World Bank, UNDP and Sida. Its founding purpose was to make integrated water resources management useful in practice, not merely a principle in international declarations. GWP sought to create a neutral platform through which governments, development institutions, experts, civil-society groups and businesses could exchange knowledge and coordinate action. At first it functioned as a unit connected to Sida. In 2002, it became an organisation under international law known as the Global Water Partnership Organisation, or GWPO. The organisation subsequently built a network of regional and country partnerships. This structure allowed water priorities to be discussed at the level where institutions and communities operate, while retaining international links for knowledge sharing and advocacy. The partnerships convene stakeholders, identify water-governance challenges and support dialogue across sectors. The Stockholm-based global secretariat coordinates and supports the network, assisting with planning, administration, communications, finance and governance. A Technical Committee provides specialist input from different fields related to water resources management. GWP’s operational model has centred on capacity building and knowledge exchange. Its activities include publications, training courses, workshops, meetings and informal professional exchanges. The IWRM Toolbox became a key knowledge resource, providing an online collection of methods, references and case studies for people working on water policy and management. Rather than presenting a single universal solution, the toolbox is intended to help practitioners assess local conditions, compare governance choices and determine priorities. The network also developed thematic cooperation around water and climate, flood management and drought management. These activities connected IWRM with climate variability, disaster risk and resilience. Partnerships with bodies including UNDP’s Cap-Net, UN-Water, UNEP and the UNEP-DHI Centre extended GWP’s knowledge and training ecosystem. The reference material describes a network of 13 Regional Water Partnerships, 68 accredited Country Water Partnerships and more than 3,000 institutional partners across more than 170 countries. Regional and country partnerships remain important to the organisation’s decentralised character: they govern themselves and lead stakeholder processes, while the global secretariat provides coordination and institutional support. GWP’s continuing identity is consequently that of an international, multi-stakeholder water network whose main assets are expertise, convening capacity, practical guidance and cross-border relationships rather than physical products or commercial ownership.

• 2021

  Darío Soto-Abril becomes Executive Secretary and CEO

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  Darío Soto-Abril took up the roles of Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer on 1 March 2021.

• 2019

  Howard Bamsey takes the chair

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  Howard Bamsey assumed the GWP chair in January 2019.

• 2014

  Ellen Johnson Sirleaf becomes a patron

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  Ellen Johnson Sirleaf became a patron of GWP in May 2014, according to the cited reference material.

• 2013

  Willem-Alexander ceases to be a patron

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  Willem-Alexander ended his role as a GWP patron on 30 April 2013 when he became King of the Netherlands.

• 2002

  Creation of the Global Water Partnership Organisation

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  GWP became an organisation under international law known as the Global Water Partnership Organisation, while its network continued to use the Global Water Partnership name.

• 1996

  Global Water Partnership founded

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  GWP was established with support from the World Bank, UNDP and Sida to promote integrated water resources management and practical cooperation.

• 1992

  Dublin Principles and Agenda 21

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  The Dublin Conference articulated principles that became foundational to integrated water resources management. Agenda 21 subsequently incorporated an integrated approach to freshwater development, management and use.

• 1977

  Mar del Plata Water Conference

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  The Mar del Plata conference increased the prominence of water in international development discussions and contributed to the policy background from which GWP later emerged.

• 1972

  Stockholm Conference strengthens the environmental policy context

  [1]Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org

  The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment helped place environmental protection and sustainable resource management at the centre of international policy debates that later influenced integrated water management.

A non-commercial international water-governance network focused on integrated water resources management, institutional cooperation, practitioner capacity and evidence-based knowledge sharing.

• Online knowledge platform

  IWRM Toolbox

  A free online resource supporting integrated water resources management. It brings together analytical approaches, references and case studies from local, national, regional and global contexts. The toolbox is intended for practitioners and professionals who need to examine water-governance problems, compare possible interventions, engage stakeholders and prioritise actions for improving water management.

• Technical and policy publications

  Water resources management publications

  GWP produces and circulates guidance and knowledge materials concerning integrated water resources management, institutional coordination, water governance and related environmental challenges. These publications support policy dialogue and provide practitioners with concepts and examples that can be adapted to national and regional circumstances.

• Professional education and technical assistance

  Capacity-building and training programmes

  Training courses, workshops, meetings and professional exchanges form a major part of GWP’s work. They are designed to strengthen the ability of institutions and practitioners to apply integrated approaches, coordinate across sectors and address water problems through participatory processes.

• Global Water and Climate Programme

  International

  A thematic programme connecting water resources management with climate-related risks and resilience. It represents GWP’s effort to address climate issues through integrated water policy and cooperation.

  Source
• Associated Programme on Flood Management

  International

  A joint GWP–World Meteorological Organization programme addressing flood management through coordinated technical and institutional approaches.

  Source
• Integrated Drought Management Programme

  International

  A thematic initiative focused on improving drought preparedness and management through cooperation, knowledge exchange and integrated water planning.

  Source

• 2002

  Institutional transformation into an organisation under international lawStrategy

  Background

  GWP began as a unit associated with Sida and developed an international network involving public, multilateral, academic, civil-society and private-sector organisations.

  Action taken

  The organisation became the Global Water Partnership Organisation, while retaining the Global Water Partnership identity for its wider network and activities.

  Aftermath

  The change provided a formal international legal structure for the organisation and its Stockholm-based secretariat.

  Source

1. 1Global Water Partnershipen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Global Water Partnership official websitegwp.org