The D-8 Water Cooperation Meeting, the first meeting convened by D-8 in this sector, has just been recently held by the Turkish Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs and the Turkish Water Institute, in collaboration with Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and D-8 Secretariat, in Istanbul on 21-23 February 2013, with participants from relevant fields from the D-8 Countries. Coinciding with the 2013 UN International Year of Water Cooperation, the purpose of that event was to enhance the collaboration on water-related issues and challenges among the D-8 Member countries, namely Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.

 

Projects on water resources, resolving the international water issues and effective use of water will form the main agenda of the meeting according to a statement by the Turkish Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs.

 

High-level governmental officials and experts from each member country joined two days of technical meeting. The meeting was subdivided in three different technical groups: Hydraulic Works, Water Management and Meteorological Service.

Experts from each member country gave an informative presentation where explained how to manage their water reserve both underground and surface, maintain the quality of drinking water, scope, challenges, legal framework and technologies which are being used in their respective countries. As a first introduction meeting, the gathering had successfully exchanges knowledge related to their country’s water profile and best practices, as well as their commitment to hold a range of expert training and skill programs among the D-8 member countries.

“It has been a set of good meetings, and we are very pleased and encouraged to see the enthusiasm shared by the participants in this meeting,” said the D-8 Secretary-General, Seyed Ali Mohammad Mousavi. Mr. Mousavi also added that the Organization will work to enhance the level of cooperation in this new area, and plan to follow it up by establishing a ministerial forum in the future meetings, in order to equip this cooperation with a sense of stronger commitment from ministerial level.

Reports of this meeting will be circulated to participants, and relevant authorities in member countries through their own country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, within the next two weeks at the latest.

The next meeting will be held in sidelines of the World Irrigation Forum in Mardin, Turkey, in September 2013, and to be followed by another meeting which will be announced in due course in Iran.

Photos of the events during the meeting can be viewed from the links below: