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Promote establishment of a collaborative base for environmental cooperation in Asia
| Project Name | Water Environment Partnership in Asia (WEPA)  (631KB) |
|---|---|
| Location | Asian region |
| Project Background | Problems in the water environment are worsening in Asia, including deterioration of water quality and the resultant health damages and disturbances to the ecological system. To solve the problems, WEPA was proposed at the Ministerial Conference of the Third World Water Forum held in March 2003 in Japan. It is officially registered in the Portfolio of Water Actions, a compilation of voluntary actions taken by countries of the world for resolution of water problems that was prepared as one of the outcomes of the Conference. |
| Objectives | With the view to solving the problem of water quality deterioration in Asia, WEPA aims to promote good governance in water environment management of its participating countries through development of information platform and implementation of capacity building programs for policy makers concerning the water environment in a harmonized way. Regarding information infrastructure, a WEPA Database has been constructed and is made available to the public, which consists of four individual databases on water environment management, namely, Policies, Technologies, NGOs' and CBOs' activities, and Sources of water-related information. In addition, international workshops, policy dialogues and collaboration with a wider spectrum of stakeholders are promoted for the purpose of advancing good governance in water environment management. |
| Member Countries | Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Viet Nam (alphabetical order) |
| Project Achievements | During Phase I (April 2004 - March 2008), the WEPA database was constructed and has
been made available to the public. In addition, international forums and bilateral meetings
(between each of the participating countries and Japan) were held, producing good
exchanges and sharing of information not only among the officials of participating countries
but also a wider spectrum of stakeholders. Moreover, a publication entitled "Outlook of
Water Environment Management Strategies in Asia" was published, providing summaries of
water environment policies of the participating countries. Participants in the 1st WEPA International Workshop -Coping strategies for water environment challenges in Asia- |
| Planned Activities | During WEPA Phase I(I April 2009 - March 2014), the water environment governance of participating countries will be analyzed comparatively, and workshops and bilateral meetings will be organized to discuss and identify the solution of common challenges among the participating countries in WEPA. In addition, cooperation with related organizations will be strengthened, including collaboration with JICA in their provision of training courses for enhancement of water environment governance. |
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