Water management is both a security challenge and opportunity

Water is essential to life, yet, as populations grow, so does the demand for water resources. Combined with a rise in pollution and the pressures of climate change, water is becoming scarcer. The more limited this precious collective resource becomes, the greater the risk of tensions and conflict and the greater the threat to socio-economic development and political stability.

But water management can be a powerful force for co-operation. As a transboundary resource, water can help bridge borders and provide opportunities for strengthening co-operation at all levels to promote stability, security and sustainable development through collective action.

Today is World Water Day. A time for accelerating action and uniting our global efforts around water. And the OSCE is doing its part.

Through my Office on Economic and Environmental Activities, the OSCE is actively involved in supporting countries with working together around water management and their international commitments on good water governance.

In Eastern Europe, we are supporting an assessment of the environmental impacts of the war against Ukraine and options for remediation to reduce safety and security risks, including related to water resources. This is a part of a larger effort in co-ordination with the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine and with international and national partners.

We are also working closely with Moldova and Ukraine as well as United Nations partners to advance co-operation toward integrated water resource management in the Dniester River Basin. We have been proud to see the progress over the last 20 years, including establishment of the Commission on Sustainable Use and Protection of the Dniester River Basin (the Dniester River Basin Commission) and endorsement of the Strategic Action Programme for the Dniester River basin for 2021-2035.

An important part of our work in the Dniester River Basin is with youth. We are raising young peoples’ awareness of and involvement in the Basin’s sustainable future through a creativity contest: “Colours of the Dniester”. In 2022, despite the war against Ukraine, 550 unique entries across all categories were submitted, with 60% from Ukraine. This is a truly remarkable result, and shows how ready young people are to engage, even in very challenging times.

In Central Asia, our Programme Office in Dushanbe is co-operating with the government of Tajikistan and international organizations to enhance national and regional water co-operation. This includes providing support for the development of water-related legislation and organizing training courses.

In South-Eastern Europe, we have helped to develop an international agreement on the Sava River Basin. We are also taking what we have learned from our work around the OSCE region and finding ways to share these best water governance practices in South-Eastern Europe and beyond.  

These are just a few examples of how our work on water management is helping to bolster regional security. What these examples also show is that the OSCE has a part to play.   

We are the world’s largest regional security organization with a platform for dialogue and co-operation unlike any other. Our approach to security is comprehensive and interwoven, stretching across political-military to economic and environmental to human dimensions. This gives us a unique expertise and perspective on security and its links to water resource management.

That contribution is what my Office is bringing to the table today at the United Nations Water Management Conference — the first of its kind in nearly 50 years. This Conference of high-level government officials and representatives from across all parts of society is a once-in-a-generation moment to collectively mobilize political leadership and accelerate progress on global water challenges in an inclusive and action-oriented way.

At the Conference’s high-level side-event on ‘Central Asia: Commitments to Water Action Agenda’, organized by the IFAS-International Fund for Aral Sea and the World Bank, I will highlight how the OSCE is enhancing co-operation for sustainable water resource management, including in Central Asia.

I will also share what we are doing in the Dniester River Basin at the ‘Good Practices on Integrated and Transboundary Water Cooperation’ side event organized by the government of Moldova. We will talk about our experiences working on inclusive water governance in the area and co-operating with international partners and national stakeholders.

Two side events on ‘Elevating Critical Voices in Water Diplomacy’ and ‘Breaking boundaries for efficient water diplomacy — untapped potential of women’s leadership’ will be a chance to underscore the critical importance of making water management more inclusive. Women are often underrepresented in political decision making, despite often being at the frontline of co-operative and integrated water solutions. This gap undermines progress towards sustainable management of shared waters. It also fails to recognize the important role women play in water, peace and security.

As we will highlight at these events, the OSCE is taking proactive steps to remedy this gender inequality. We have projects involving women professionals to build more inclusive and participatory water governance efforts and to bolster peace and security around the OSCE region.

One great example is our Women in Water Management Network in Central Asia and Afghanistan. This Network is supporting women, particularly younger professionals, around the region by building their skills, expanding their networks, and increasing their participation in water governance at all levels. It is also helping to strengthen their awareness of good water governance and their capacities related to negotiation, diplomacy, and mediation for peacebuilding processes and conflict prevention particularly around water issues.

The backbone of this Network is co-operation. It was born out of a partnership with the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC) and the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). And it is now plugged into the global Women in Water Diplomacy Network, where women water professionals from across the world are connecting and working together toward a more cohesive and inclusive global water governance approach.

There is still much work to be done to meet the world’s goals on water and to make water action more inclusive. We will continue to do our part to support the international water agenda and cultivate a more secure, inclusive, and stable world for us all.