22 March 2023, 12:30-13:45 EST, Side event at the UN 2023 Water Conference, UN headquarters, New York and online 

In his opening remarks at the WASAG side event at the UN Water Conference in New York, FAO Director-General, Dr QU Dongyu, thanked all partners for their continued commitment to WASAG, and invited all FAO Members to join this powerful partnership. He also highlighted that WASAG is core to FAO’s commitment to integrated water resources management for the effective transformation of global agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable. Read the whole speech here. 

The side event on “Global Framework on Water Scarcity in Agriculture (WASAG): Implementing the 2023 Praia Declaration through the Decade’s work streams” took place on 22 March at the UN 2023 Water Conference in New York.

The objective of the side event was to discuss the implementation of the 2023 Praia Call for Action through the decade’s work streams. This Call for Action has been endorsed by WASAG Partners and Stakeholders during the 2nd WASAG International Forum in Cabo Verde in February 2023.

The 2023 Praia Call for Action is a synthesis of the recommendations formulated by the WASAG partners to mobilize political commitment to accelerate strategic actions, including policies and investments, and to collaborate through actions which place greater focus on the sustainable development and integrated management of water resources for the achievement of social, economic and environmental objectives, and to address water scarcity in agriculture and empower farmers, including women and youth.

The side event was open to all stakeholders interested in supporting the cooperation and partnerships at all levels to achieve internationally agreed water-related goals and targets, including those in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a special focus on water scarcity. 

It was moderated by the Mr Lifeng Li, Director of the Land and Water division, with opening remarks by FAO Director-General, Dr QU Dongyu, followed with a keynote speech by H.E. Gilberto Silva, Minister of Agriculture and Environment of Cabo Verde, to set the stage and to present the efforts being undertaken to implement the 2023 Praia Call for Action. This was followed by invited remarks by Mr Affo Bôni Adjama, Directeur de Cabinet of the Ministry of Water and Rural Water Supply, Republic of Togo, and a panel discussion on the implementation of the Praia Call for Action led by the WASAG Partners and Stakeholders including:

• Professionals (represented by Mr Marco Arcieri, Vice-President of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, ICID)
• Women (represented by Mariet Verhoef-Cohen, President of the Women from Water Partnership, WfWP)
• The Youth (represented by Sophie Erfurth of the Water Youth Network, WYN) 

The side event provided the participants with the opportunity to share their organization’s plans, as well as suggest what they can do to keep the Decade relevant and present among all of our peers. 

Following the Praia Call for Action, all member countries will be invited to the first Rome Water Dialogue on WASAG in 2024 as the First Assembly of WASAG. Partners will also discuss the implementation of the Praia Call for Action during the Water for Food Global Conference that will take place in Lincoln, Nebraska, from 8 to 11 May 2023.