Seminar: "Under Cover? Transboundary Aquifers – the Hidden Asset for Riparian Cooperation in Africa"

Seminar at the World Water Week in Stockholm, 20 August, 2006

Jointly convened by

in cooperation with

At the World Water Week in Stockholm, BGR together with UNESCO, the Division of Global Environment Facility Coordination (DGEF) of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) and the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) in partnership with the African Minister’s Council on Water (AMCOW) jointly convened a seminar on transboundary groundwater in Africa.

The aim of this seminar was to bring out the relevance of riparian cooperation on groundwater and to clarify what benefits such cooperation can generate and in which way they can be best created. Benefits in this context should not be limited to economic gains but also include increased social and ecological welfare. The seminar provided a forum for the exchange of experiences from African transboundary aquifers. On the basis of these experiences it was envisaged to stimulate the dialogue between policy makers and experts from North and South to elaborate new ideas for transboundary cooperation on groundwater.

Key element of this seminar was the multi-dimensional approach to benefit sharing. Groundwater is of vital importance for Sub-Sahara Africa regarding different aspects of society like human well-being (drinking water supply), economic development (industry, agriculture) as well as preserving the environment for future generations. These manifold functions of groundwater require transboundary cooperation beyond economic benefit sharing.

The seminar had a close look on three African cases of transboundary aquifers: The Iullemeden Basin in West Africa; the Chad Basin in Central Africa; and examples from the SADC region. In the afternoon, a panel discussion with international experts drew conclusions from the cases and promoted a way forward to enhance cooperation on groundwater in Africa. The panel discussion was facilitated by Peter Croll from Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC).