Main Conclusions - Minutes of the Meeting

Main Conclusions - Minutes of the Meeting.

EU Water Initiative
Mediterranean Component

3rd Meeting of the Med Multi-Stakeholder Forum
Wednesday, 17 March 2004
09:00 - 13:00 am
Premises of the Greek Permanent Representation to the EU, 1000 Brussels

CONCLUSIONS OF THE MEETING

Participants were welcomed to the Greek Permanent Representation in Brussels by HE the Ambassador. It was noted that the main purpose of the meeting would be to discuss guiding lines for further developing the Mediterranean Component of the EU Water Initiative (MED EUWI) and for finalizing the MED EUWI Activity Plan 2004-2006.

A presentation of the overall EUWI objectives, structure and activities was made by the EU Commission.

A presentation on the MED EUWI background, content, themes and priorities was made by the MED EUWI Secretariat.

It was followed by a presentation of the MED EUWI Activity Plan 2004-2006. The purpose of the Activity Plan is to formulate a set of interrelated actions, defined by specific targets, expected results, monitoring frameworks and timeframes. It is designed to generate momentum for fulfilling the stated objectives of MED EUWI. Shortcomings and next steps that need to be taken were described in the presentation that is attached.

The following general points were raised during the discussion:

- The added value of MED EUWI was extensively discussed. It was clarified that MED EUWI is a process with long term objectives. It is not a funding mechanism but a means for better coordination among partner countries and donors, actively involving also the stakeholders. It has emerged from the fact there are a few important mechanisms and a lot of activities on water but no real coordination. Succeeding an effective coordination is not easy and some times might not be even feasible. The main concept of EUWI and its Mediterranean Component is based on development of partnership and ownership. A functioning partnership and coherence on priorities that would lead into concrete action would be a substantial added value of the Component. Experiences from more advanced EUWI Components like the one in Africa have proven that it is a learning process for all players involved.

- The Component should coordinate with national and international donors. Until now some contacts have been established and possibilities for collaborations are being explored. Further awareness should be raised among donors and contacts should be developed in an organised way.

- The EU Commission has a critical role in the development of the Component. There are a few budget lines that could be linked with its works and eventually contribute to its activities (including MEDA, SMAP, CARDS, etc). A major driving force for progressing with the Africa Component has been the announcement of the ACP-EU Water Facility. There is no such funding mechanism foreseen for the Mediterranean and South Eastern Europe, but already a lot is invested on water through bilateral and multilateral programmes.

- The contribution of the Building Blocks to the development of the Component remains unclear. Experiences from the EECCA Component where the model was used may be useful. The main challenge through the Building Blocks process would be to increase capacity of existing good projects and related delivery of outputs.

- Operational links should be established between the Mediterranean and the Africa Component and should address countries of North Africa. Further on, there are lessons to be learned and experiences to be shared on the development and application of the two Components. The African Ministerial Council for Water (AMCOW) has suggested two countries of North Africa for Country Dialogues and effort should be made to respond to this call. Mauritania, though member of the North African Ministerial Council for Water (NAMCOW), is not part of the MED EUWI target countries.

- The Joint Process between the Water Framework Directive and the EU Water Initiative provide a good platform for developing activities at the river basin level and getting action on the ground.

The following comments were made on the draft Activity Plan 2004-2006:

- The Activity Plan should receive political endorsement. Currently, there is no obvious body or platform to respond to that. A suitable decision making mechanism could be identified within the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership or, eventually, the Barcelona Convention or the Mediterranean Commission for Sustainable Development. Ideally, this should be at the Ministerial level as it is the case in Africa and the EECCA Components. If this is not possible for the moment, political endorsement for the Activity Plan or other MED EUWI products should be sought on convenient occasions. Some concern was raised that the Activity Plan, at its present form, might be too detailed for political endorsement.

- The need to involve the regional stakeholders in all steps of the Component's development and in the endorsement of the Activity Plan was emphasized. Already this is facilitated through the meetings of the MED EUWI Multi-Stakeholder Working Group.

- The Activity Plan should separate activities aiming for the countries of the South and East Mediterranean which could be linked with the MEDA and the activities aiming for the countries of Southeastern Europe that could be linked with the CARDS. Both instruments have substantially supported water actions but they have not touched the river basin level yet. Working on the latter along with national level coordination, could practically demonstrate added value of the Component.

- More emphasis should be given by MED EUWI and the Activity Plan to the South Eastern Europe sub-component. Clear political mandate has been provided during the Informal Meeting of the Ministers for Environment of EU and Balkan countries, June 2003, in Athens, during the Greek Presidency of the European Union. Further to the national focus, particular attention should be given to transboundary waters in the region. A coordination meeting particularly for South Eastern European countries would assist in raising further MED EUWI profile in the region.

- The background assessments foreseen under different Objectives might prove to be a difficult task. There are many and scattered activities in the countries of the region and trying to register them and produce results from their analysis it might end to look like a 'moving target'. It was agreed that it would be of assistance to have updated lists of programmes and projects supported at different level (regional, national, local) but priority should be clearly be given to overall assessment and understanding of current realities and trends in the different sectors (IWRM, WSS, etc). Lists of supported projects should be provided by donors, including involved DGs of the European Commission.

- There are many activities supported over the years in the Mediterranean on the issue of Water, Food and Environmental Interaction (Objective 3). Though this could eventually mean that priority should be given on other Objectives of the Activity Plan that may be less addressed, the fact that agricultural water corresponds to more than 80% of the water used in the region advocates for its importance and should be retained in the primary focus of the Component.

- The assessment of the costs to meet the water-related MDGs in the region would be important and could provide background for development of policy initiatives. Collaboration with the EECCA Component where experiences and models are in place should be sought.

- Effort should be made to present and discuss the Activity Plan in different regional and international events within the next few months.

- Detailed comments on the Activity Plan should be provided by partners within 3 weeks (mid April 2004). The document will become available on line.

The next meeting of the Med Multi-Stakeholder Forum could take place in August 2004, in Stockholm, combined with the World Water Week.