News and Events

Regional Consultation Workshop on Water in Asian Cities - The Role of Civil Society
14-16 October 2002, ADB Auditorium, Manila

Post Workshop Statement

Background

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is conducting a Study on Water in Asian Cities under a regional technical assistance, RETA 6031: Promoting Effective Water Management Policies and Practices. The main objective of the study is to increase awareness of stakeholders of the issues faced by the urban water sector in developing member countries (DMCs) of ADB and provide policy makers with better strategies to provide access to water for the urban poor.

Under the study, a team of international and domestic consultants is conducting studies on the water situation in 21 Asian Cities:

Another team of consultants is conducting a parallel study of small-scale private water providers in 8 cities to look into the services provided in most areas that are not served by the formal water utility. These are

The results of the study will be presented and discussed in a Regional Consultation Workshop (RCW) on Water in Asian Cities. The RCW will focus on the role of civil society in improving water supply and sanitation in Asian cities. The results of the consultation and the study will be an input to the 3rd World Water Forum to be held in Kyoto, Japan in March 2003. It will be the regional contribution of ADB to the Water and Cities theme to be presented in the forum under the over-all coordination of UN-Habitat.

Objectives

The objectives of the regional consultation workshop are to

• identify water supply and sanitation issues in Asian cities and proposed ways and means of resolving them
• identify actions that can be taken by civil society and others to improve water supply and sanitation in Asian cities. Advocacy for these actions will be pursued at the 3rd World Water Forum

Expected Output

Workshop Documents

• Programme
• Workshop on Improving Water and Sanitation in Asian Cities

Organizers

ADB has been collaborating with the following organizations in preparation for the consultation:

• UN-Habitat
• WaterAid
• Government of Nepal
• Manila Water Company, Inc.
• The World Bank
• 3rd World Water Forum Secretariat

The consultation workshop and the Study on Water in Asian Cities are both being funded from ADB's Water Cooperation Fund of which the Government of the Netherlands is the main contributor.

Participants

Participation in the workshop is by invitation only. Approximately 100 participants from the Asia and Pacific region are expected to attend the workshop. This includes representatives from:

• Civil society - journalists, NGOs and academics from the cities in the study
• Multilateral and bilateral development institutions
• Private sector operators
• Experts and case study presenters

To prepare for their participation in the workshop, civil society participants were asked to prepare and submit before the workshop a one-page overview of the water supply situation in their cities and propose solutions from their perspective as consumers.

Registration

Contacts

Arthur C. McIntosh
Principal Water Supply Specialist, RSAN, ADB and Team Leader for the Study on Water in Asian Cities
E-mail: amcintosh@adb.org

Cesar E. Yñiguez
Consultant, Study on Water for Asian Cities
E-mail: cyniguez@adb.org