The first round of international consultations on the establishment of an International Water Organization (IWO) under the auspices of the United Nations was held on the margins of the Regional Ecological Summit.

The event brought together high-level representatives of states, international organizations, as well as members of the scientific and expert communities.

At the opening of the consultations, Didar Temenov, Director of the Department of Multilateral Cooperation, delivered remarks on behalf of Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Yermek Kosherbayev. He outlined the objectives of the initiative put forward by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to consolidate United Nations water-related mandates in order to ensure the effective advancement of this agenda.

Perspectives on the establishment of the International Water Organization were also shared by UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Li Junhua; the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Water, Retno Marsudi (via video message); the UNECE Executive Secretary, Tatiana Molcean; as well as representatives of UNESCO, UN-Water, and other UN specialized agencies.

Country positions and proposals were presented by the Representative of the President of Azerbaijan on Climate Issues and President of COP29, Mukhtar Babayev; the Minister of Water Resources of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Khamraev; the Minister of Environmental Protection of Serbia, Sara Pavkov; as well as deputy ministers of relevant ministries from a number of countries and other representatives of UN Member States.

Overall, representatives of states, international organizations, and the scientific community expressed support for the initiative of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan to establish an International Water Organization. Participants underscored its timeliness and legitimacy in light of the urgent need to strengthen the global water governance system.

Representatives of states and international organizations reaffirmed their readiness to engage constructively in further discussions on the establishment of the IWO.

For her side, the moderator of the consultations, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zulfiya Suleimenova, expressed her appreciation to the participants for their active engagement in launching the negotiation process and affirmed that Kazakhstan will continue to advance this initiative across all relevant international platforms.

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/mfa/press/news/details/1209178?lang=kk