10.45 to 12.15

This session by the Korea Water Forum and the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea will share the latest solutions for carbon-neutral smart water management, and provide the framework and direction for the regional cooperation and partnership enhancing climate resilience and achieving sustainable development.

The groundwater governance and management process involve identifying the required legal, regulatory, and institutional arrangements to establish public guardianship and collective responsibility for groundwater resources, and to introduce technical management measures with stakeholder integration and cross-sector coordination. Due to the diversity and complexity of water problems, it is often challenging to identify the role of groundwater and adequately incorporate it in the decision-making process.

The Special session on the Global Observatory for Water and Peace will facilitate dialogue between politicians, diplomats, actors from the water as well as from the peace and security sector, and will present the Pole Eau Dakar- the West-African regional partner to the Global Observatory for Water and Peace.

What are the new perspectives on drought in a time of climate change? Drought is often compared with other natural hazards such as floods, storms, and wildfires. However, unlike these hazards, drought is often a so-called hidden risk, meaning that its onset is not perceived until drought conditions are already having an impact.

Objectives of the Session:

The Great Green Wall (GGW) project is one of the largest projects to combat desertification initiated and carried out by Africa, in particular by the Sahelo-Saharan States. This project aims to unite the Sahelian States around the issues of combating desertification and adapting to climate change in a logic of sustainable economic development.
The project aims by 2030 to :
- Restore 100 million hectares of degraded land
- Create 10 million green jobs
- Sequester 250 million tons of carbon

Water, land and soil resources are the sources of life, without which there is no agriculture. With 98% of the food consumed produced on land/soil and the immediate and visible impact of drought on crop production, the good state of these crucial natural resources should be everyone's priority. In 2011, FAO published its first comprehensive report on the status of the world’s land and water resources for food and agriculture (SOLAW 2011). This new edition of SOLAW update the previous status of the resources, review the trends and explore the new emerging global processes.

Climate change is exacerbating both water scarcity and water-related hazards, as rising temperatures disrupt precipitation patterns and the entire water cycle. It is estimated that 80% of the impacts of climate change are felt through water and the crisis will only intensify in the future.

At the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP26, the Water and Climate Coalition Leaders issued an urgent and united call for integrated water and climate action to replace the existing fragmented and crisis-driven approach.

The main objective of the session is to promote the Water-Energy-Food-Environment Nexus approach for a sustainable response to development needs.
Specifically, it will aim to
- Promote a better understanding of the water-energy-food-environment nexus concept for the development of synergies;
- To map the relationships and mutual impacts between these different sectors;
- To bring out good practices and innovative solutions to make the Nexus approach operational;
- Define methods of cooperation to maximize the benefits of the nexus.

Showcasing actions that identify and address the most challenging global water issues. By promoting action-oriented cases of pragmatic solutions!