February 2, 2016.-Representatives of ACTO Member Countries during the 4th Technical Meeting of the Strategic Action Programme / 6th Steering Committee Meeting of ACTO UNEP- GEF Amazon Project held in Brasilia, Brazil on January 29, approved at technical level the Strategic Action Program for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in the Amazon Basin.
The program defines the objectives, strategies and means to face the main cross-border problems and reaches solutions for sustainable development and environmental protection of the Amazon Basin. At the same time, it establishes strategies and priorities for actions at the regional level as well points to policy guidelines and regulations in a context of institutional strengthening and capacity building.
Based on the identification process and analysis of the set of problems affecting the water resources that took place during eleven national workshops held with the participation of over 470 representatives of institutions from the Amazon countries, nine border issues were defined as priorities for regional cooperation (water pollution, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, extreme hydro-climate events, erosion, sediment transportation and sedimentation, land use change, loss of glaciers, great infrastructure projects and; integrated water resources management).
The participants also agreed on a shared vision that sought to reflect the perceptions and aspirations of the Amazonian society, through a consultation conducted with more than 8,700 inhabitants of the region, and guided the great goals and objectives of the program. That way, the countries consolidated three major strategic lines of response: Strengthening IWRM Adaptation to Climate Change and Variability and Knowledge Management, which will be implemented through 19 strategic actions.
The basin is a unique water system that crosses national boundaries of the eight ACTO Member Countries. These countries consider the need to have a regional framework for IWRM to meet the needs of the population and to promote sustainable development of the Amazon Region.
Source: ACTO
