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A Matter of Survival

enable participation, relevant information and exchange of data New and old sources of finance, including the Asian
for all stakeholders, including civil society groups. Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Islamic Development Bank,
and development assistance programs of emerging economies
An appropriate level of transparency and data sharing should should give priority to collaborative projects.
be provided from the early stages of the project. The process
should involve relevant governmental departments and New instruments such as the Blue Fund should be created to
agencies, businesses, civil society organizations and the provide preferential and concessional finance to subsidize interest,
scientific community. insurance and related ancillary costs of large infrastructure
projects for the countries that are willing to work together in a
We recommend that governments guarantee the necessary collaborative way to develop transboundary water projects.
multi-stakeholder dialogue platforms. In order to enable effective
operation of these platforms, it is essential to invest systematically The private sector should be encouraged to develop
in water education and water management at all levels. innovative financial instruments such as blue bonds to finance
transboundary water cooperation.
More generally, states should include water education in their
educational systems in order to build the necessary knowledge The problem of preparing bankable projects should also be
and awareness regarding water use as well as to build the addressed by offering a neutral, independent “safe space,”
capacity of citizens to participate in water policymaking. through pre-negotiation opportunities at an early project
development stage, with the aim of addressing the major
Best practices of inter-sectoral water cooperation should be implementation issues early and proactively. This would help in
studied and lessons learned used in future projects. This should ensuring an adequate quality in the preparation of projects.
gradually contribute to the development of a set of global
standards on inter-sectoral water management.
7. In Pursuit of Agency: New Mechanisms of
The UN Global Compact, exercising its Waters Mandate, should Water Diplomacy
be instrumental in developing a Voluntary Code of Practice on
Water Management. We recommend the establishment of the Global Observatory
for Water and Peace (GOWP), an international facility of hydro-
6. Financial Innovation for Water Cooperation diplomacy with the aim of facilitating, promoting and energizing
diplomatic efforts to leverage water for comprehensive peace.
The international community should create financial and other
incentives to promote transboundary water cooperation in a The Observatory should focus specifically on facilitating
sustained and significant way. cooperation in situations of potential tension in order to preempt
its escalation through joint vision development, confidence
The riparian countries in transboundary watercourses, lakes building, and exploring options for peaceful solutions. In
and aquifers should use conventional sources of finance for the implementation of its mandate, the Observatory would
institution building, capacity building and similar activities. cooperate closely with regional water centers and other relevant
Preparation of transboundary infrastructure projects should be organizations.
high quality and aim at making the projects bankable.
The Global Observatory for Water and Peace should play an
The international community should encourage riparian advisory role and catalyze the understanding of the political
countries to undertake Joint Investment Plans. importance of water cooperation. It should also facilitate, as
necessary, the possibilities for fact finding and good offices, while
The international financial sector should gradually include the established mechanisms for the settlement of international
transboundary water cooperation in the expanded ESG disputes will be available to states that ultimately make the
principles. Ultimately, the ESG framework should include the relevant choices.
Blue Peace framework and serve as an incentive for investment
in transboundary water projects. The GOWP would participate in efforts to create a “safe space”
for financing of transboundary water projects by promoting early
An international task force should be established to assess the consultations among the relevant stakeholders, with the aim of
evolution of sustainable finance practices and their application addressing design and implementation issues of such projects
to transboundary water cooperation. in a proactive way, and by helping to generate innovative ideas,
confidence and a joint vision of transboundary water cooperation.
The multilateral development organizations should consider
collaborative projects on a preferential basis and spread The Co-Convening Countries of the Panel and other like-minded
awareness of facilities. One example is the regional funds of the countries are invited to consider initiating the establishment of
International Development Association, which should promote the Global Observatory for Water and Peace after having studied
transboundary water infrastructure projects. this report and having defined specific niches for its activities.

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