Meeting in Belém do Pará on August 6, as part of the Amazon Dialogues, Directors and Water Authorities from the eight member countries of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) – Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela – agreed to create the Amazon Network of Water Authorities (RADA). The proposal was taken to the Presidents of the Member Countries meeting at the Amazon Summit and included in the Belém Declaration, a document that establishes a common agenda for the Amazon nations to promote the sustainable development of the Amazon and combat the socio-environmental degradation of the biome.
According to the Belém Declaration, the creation of RADA is aimed at cooperation and mutual support in the management and monitoring of water resources in the Amazon, with a view to revitalizing, conserving and protecting water sources. To this end, regional protocols will be established and the implementation of projects and initiatives on surface and groundwater will be promoted, strengthening the countries’ technical, technological and institutional capacities, technological innovation and intercultural dialog.
In this way, the Amazon Network of Water Authorities will contribute to mitigating the risks of water insecurity and the negative impacts of climate change in the Amazon territories, establishing integrated monitoring and early warning systems to support decision-making, while at the same time mobilizing resources for the implementation of priority programmes and projects.
Another action of the Amazon Network of Water Authorities will be to contribute to the harmonization of regulatory frameworks for water resources, taking into account the sovereignty of the countries.
In Belém, the Water Authorities drew up the proposal for the RADA Network Regulations, setting out the objectives, competencies and operating model. The document, which will still go through a revision stage, will be made official within ACTO. To begin its work, ACTO will subsequently convene the First Meeting of the RADA Network.
