DUSHANBE, January 27, 2015, Asia-Plus — The first meeting of Tajikistan Water Supply and Sanitation (TajWSS) Network in 2015 will take place in Dushanbe on January 28.
The Network meeting will be facilitated by Oxfam GB within the framework of the Tajikistan Water Supply and Sanitation Project, funded by Swiss Development Agency (SDC) and implemented in partnership with the Government of Tajikistan and UNDP.
Welcoming speeches are expected to be made by Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, First Deputy Minister of Energy and Water resources of the Republic of Tajikistan, as well as Mr. Zarif Alizoda, Ombudsman of Tajikistan, Ms. Patricia Veevers – Carter, World Bank Country Manager for Tajikistan and Mr. Bojan Kolundzija, Country Director of Oxfam GB in Tajikistan.
The meeting will include presentations and updates from its members and partners, with specific focus on the plans in water and sanitation sub-sector in 2015. Main discussion points will be:
– Water Sector in 2015. The presentation of the Ministry of Energy and Water resources of the Republic of Tajikistan will give an overview of the priorities and future water policies, activities and events planned to be held this year. One of them is a High Level International Conference on the implementation of the Decade for Action ‘Water for Life’ 2005-2015 planned for June 2015;
– Water-Food-Energy-Ecosystems Nexus Assessment in the Syr Darya River Basin. The nexus assessment of the Syr Darya River Basin is part of a series of trans-boundary basin assessments being carried out in 2013–2015 within the framework of the UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Trans-boundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention). Presentation will focus on the components of the assessment, i.e. Water-food-energy-ecosystems nexus in the Syr Darya Basin unveiling the links, trade-offs and synergic benefits between those four key sectors/resources;
– Tajikistan Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Improving Social Accountability Project (TWISA). This project is implemented by Oxfam GB and its local partner Consumer Union Association of Tajikistan and funded by GPSA – Global Partnership for Social Accountability (a multi-partner fund administered by the World Bank). The purpose of the TWISA project is to provide a basis for constructive engagement between service users, providers and regulators for sharing information on service performance, discussing discrepancies and issues, and identifying solutions that can be implemented through joint action. Network members will be informed about the objectives and further steps of the project;
– Water and Sanitation in schools. Public Organization «Young generation of Tajikistan» (PO «YGT») is implementing the project “Water supply, sanitation and hygiene in schools and through school” funded by Bread for the World – Protestant Development Service. Project’s goal is the reduction of water borne diseases among children under 14 years in Vakhdat and Istaravshan districts. PO «YGT» will make a presentation of objectives and expected results of the two year project;
– World Water Day 2015. TajWSS Network members will discuss and plan joint activities to mark World Water Day on March 22, 2015. Under the theme ‘Water and Sustainable Development’, the year 2015 provides an important opportunity to consolidate and build upon the previous World Water Days to highlight water”s role in the sustainable development agenda.
The Network of Stakeholder Organizations on Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation was created on November 12, 2009. The TajWSS Network is a national multistakeholder platform of actors from government, international institutions, donors, science institutions and academia, public, private and other not-for-profit organizations in the water and sanitation subsector in Tajikistan, who gather regularly in plenary meetings and working groups to advance the national drinking-water and sanitation agenda.
