Dear Friends,
It is my pleasure to invite you to the 3rd High-Level International Conference on International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018-2028 to be hosted by the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan in Dushanbe from 10-13 June 2024.
At the mid-point of the International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018-2028, it is clear that we are alarmingly off-track in implementing SDG 6. Despite progress, billions of people still lack access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene and achieving universal coverage by 2030 will require a substantial increase in current global rates of progress.
In March 2023, at the United Nations Water Conference, world leaders gathered in New York, determined to set the world back on track to achieving SDG6 “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all” by 2030. The scope and scale of the Conference along with the enthusiastic response to the call for pledges, demonstrated the collective ambition of the international community towards implementing our common priorities on water.
A key outcome of the Conference, convened after nearly fifty years, was the Water Action Agenda: a compendium of voluntary pledges that were announced or registered in the lead up to, as well as during the Conference itself. As of today, over 830 commitments have been published. These commitments recognize the cross-cutting nature of water and leverage the interlinkages between SDG 6 and other goals in the 2030 Agenda.
Many of these commitments seek to work across the interlinkages of water action, climate action, environmental protection, human health and partnerships, with commitments made by stakeholders at all levels and sectors.
But now we need to deliver on the commitments made. We need a holistic and integrated approach to water management, innovative and evidence-based solutions, increased sector-wide investment and capacity-building, and strengthened cross-sectoral coordination and cooperation among all stakeholders.
This will require an increase in resources dedicated to water. Overall, ODA increased from $191 billion in 2015 to $235 billion in 2021. However, ODA for water showed a decreasing trend over the same period, with commitments falling by 12 per cent to $9. 8 billion, and with ODA disbursement for water decreasing by 15 per cent to $8. 1 billion. This alarming trend must be reversed.
Partnerships and collaboration in the area of science, technology and innovation, and with government and financial bodies will be essential.
At the same time, national commitments that can be scaled up at the regional level or even global level should be identified and studied. Similarly, we can learn from those commitments that are international in scope and see how they can be applied to regional and national settings.
Political will alongside institutional strength and skilled human capital will be crucial if we are to address our water related challenges.
The 3rd Dushanbe Conference in June will provide a platform to follow up the outcomes of the UN 2023 Water Conference and generate the action needed on the ground.
The Conference will also provide an opportunity to make additional voluntary commitments aimed at addressing our common concerns on water.
The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs is pleased to partner with Tajikistan in the organization of the Dushanbe Conference and stands ready to support countries and stakeholders in their efforts to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
I look forward to welcoming you in Dushanbe and wish you all a fruitful Conference.