Asia-Pacific Water Forum

The first summit will be held in Oita Prefecture, Japan, on December 3 and 4, 2007. The Government of Japan will support the summit with cabinet approval.^(*3) The Summit shall be organized by the Asia-Pacific Water Forum and the Steering Committee of the 1st Asia-Pacific Water Summit consisting of eminent persons from Japan and other countries in the region.

The first Summit will focus on the three priority themes which were identified in the regional document for the 4th World Water Forum as the first important steps towards progress: Water Financing, Water-related Disaster Management, and Water for Development and Ecosystems.

For the theme "Water Financing," the Summit will rally for political support, show case success stories and institutional frameworks for financing water related infrastructure and human capacity development. The Summit will show case evidence based success stories on how the unanticipated economic growth in the region can be translated into better life style and opportunities for the people, through investments in water infrastructure. It is expected that the Summit will bring commitment by leaders on concrete programs to also invest in capacity development for people and institutions that build self-reliance.

The Summit will also facilitate dialogue between leaders from the region, and partner organizations to tap new sources and to develop innovative financial mechanisms. In this regard, the Summit will create incentives for leaders to showcase tangible water sector results in their respective countries, as reflected by increased water investments, adoption and implementation of strategic reforms, improved water governance at all levels, and significant progress in reaching the MDGs.

For the second theme "Water-related Disaster Management," Water-related disasters triggered by too much water or too little water are major challenges that our nations need to promptly overcome in order to ensure human security and poverty alleviation as well as for economic development. In this direction, it is expected that the summit will create the adequate platform in the Asia Pacific region to share knowledge and experiences for effective and sustainable implementation of the objectives and goals adopted by the Millennium development Goals, the Hashimoto Action Plan and the Hyogo Framework for Action.

The Summit will introduce good practices and successful disaster mitigation actions to serve as momentum to appeal for political commitment to set clear targets and strategies to achieve effective disaster reduction in the Asia Pacific region acknowledge as the most vulnerable region to water disaster in the world. The summit will also create a new conducive environment and opportunity for dialogue between leaders and disaster managers in the region as well as to create a critical awareness towards the shared role of governments and international institutions, such as the United Nations and International Funding agencies, in meeting the adopted goals and initiatives.

For the third theme "Water for Development and Ecosystem," over the last decade, more emphasis has been placed on establishing sustainable water management practices. Healthy aquatic ecosystems provide tangible economic and social benefits. Protecting zones at the land-water interface such as mangroves, paddy fields, wetlands, forests not only increase ecosystem health, but may also provide extra protection against some disasters and saline intrusion, aide groundwater recharge and improve overall quality of life. Understanding the drivers and status of ecosystem degradation and the need for watershed restoration in order to improve water productivity across the Asia-Pacific region is an important component of this theme. Another key element to this theme is the concept of environmental flows which refer to water provided within a river, wetland or coastal zone to main ecosystems and their benefits where there are competing water uses. In most river basins the natural flows have been modified to some extent, to meet the needs of human settlement, irrigation, flood control or energy generation.

The Summit will showcase the status of the key issues and success stories within this theme. A synthesis of key messages along with policy recommendations will be presented and commitment will be sought among government leaders and partner organizations to move forward a water agenda for the Asia-Pacific region.

The APWF lead institutions will also report on the cutting-edge information and key findings on the Key Results Areas (KRAs), and Priority Themes to the top-level leaders at the Summit.