Multistakeholder workshop held in Colombia on the principles for responsible governance of water tenure

As part of the project ScaleWat: scaling up capacities for responsible governance of water tenure,  the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in partnership with the National Water and Biodiversity Center of the National Association of Entrepreneurs of Colombia (ANDI) and the Business Environmental Corporation (CAEM), is leading the dialogue with the private sector on the responsible governance of water tenure.

At a workshop held on 15 September, with the participation of more than 30 members of companies and trade associations, a progress was made in reviewing the Principles for Responsible Water Tenure Governance, leading up to the Global Dialogue on Water Tenure, a multi-stakeholder platform created by FAO and its partners to discuss the principles of responsible water tenure governance, with the aim of strengthening secure and equitable access to water resources for all legitimate users, including women and marginalized groups, in support of broader goals in health, food security, social inclusion and climate resilience. 

"In Colombia, we work with stakeholders in the Frío and Sevilla river basins, in the Magdalena department, generating evidence for public policy, feeding information systems and strengthening capacities of local leaders", said María Alejandra Chaux, National Coordinator of the project in Colombia and senior specialist of National Resources and Governance at FAO in Colombia.

"Water is a common good and its governance requires shared responsibility. Today we reaffirm that the private sector is a key ally to move principles into practice and accelerate concrete solutions in the territories", said Augustín Zimmerman, FAO Representative in Colombia, at the opening of the meeting. 

During the conference, technical advances and proposals were presented on hydrological modeling, climate change scenarios and adaptation measures, key issues on the agenda that highlight the need to move toward water efficiency and, to that end, the sustainable management of this resource, which is limited for more than 2 billion people currently living in countries with high water stress. Working groups identified challenges and proposed alternatives that would allow for the joint construction of inclusive water tenure.