OSCE Mission to Moldova supports confidence-building conference for Dniester/Nistru basin NGOs

An international conference supported by the OSCE Mission to Moldova on issues pertaining to the Dniester/Nistru river basin was held on 26 and 27 October 2017 in Tiraspol.

The conference, "Transboundary Dniester/Nistru River Basin Management: Platform for Co-operation and Current Challenges”, aimed to develop recommendations for the soon to be established Dniester/Nistru River Commission.  More than 160 researchers, journalists, NGO activists and politicians from Moldova, Romania, Russia, and Ukraine discussed transnational co-operation on the Dniester/Nistru River and reviewed different joint activities undertaken by both left (Transdniestria) and right banks of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.

The conference was organized in partnership with the Eco-TIRAS International Association of River Keepers, which is comprised of more than 50 NGOs focusing on the ecosystem of the Dniester/Nistru River basin. “This is the eighth conference on the Dniester river basin over the past 19 years. Civil society must defend the right of the public to live in a resilient environment. In order to do so, NGOs should possess up-to-date knowledge and be able to influence decision-making processes whilst maintaining their independence,” said Eco-TIRAS Executive Director Ilia Trombitchi.

The conference is part of the Mission’s greater effort towards mutual confidence-building on both banks of the Dniester/Nistru.