APWF 29th Governing Council Meeting

Overview
The Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF), for which the Japan Water Forum serves as the secretariat, organized its 29th Governing Council Meeting in Singapore and online on Wednesday, July 27. This APWF Governing Council Meeting was the first held after the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS). The purpose of this meeting was to propose activities for the next three years and discuss the direction of APWF activities to deep dive into the achievement of the 4th APWSf for quality growth, which satisfies all of the Sustainability, Resilient and Inclusive development of Asia and the Pacific. 47 officials participated in this meeting. (14 at the venue in Singapore and 33 officials online)

Meeting Discussion
In the beginning of the meeting, we had an inauguration ceremony for the New APWF Governing Council Chair, Mr. Mark Pascoe, CEO of the International Water Centre, Griffith University, Australia. He has served as the Governing Council Chair of the APWF since April 2022, following the retirement of Mr. Ravi Narayanan, who had served as the APWF Governing Council Chair for 15 years.

　Next, the APWF Secretariat reported on the outcomes and achievements of the 4th APWS. Kumamoto City, the co-host of the 4th APWS, expressed gratitude to the APWF member organizations and all participants in the 4th APWS.

　The APWF Secretariat presented a roadmap of activities for the next three years based on the outcomes of the 4th APWS. Science and technology, Governance, and Finance are the key pillars of the activities. The following organizations proposed what they can collaborate on and their expectation of the contribution from the APWF member.
・Asian Development Bank (ADB)
・Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)
・UNESCO East Asia,
・UNESCO Scientific bureau of Asia & Pacific
・Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
・Water Integrity -Network (WIN)
・Global Water Partnership Southeast Asia & South Asia (GWP Southeast Asia & South Asia), Japan Sanitation Consortium (JSC)
・Korea Water Forum
・Secretariat of the Pacific Asia Community (SPC)
・The Global Infrastructure Board (GIB)

The outcome of the discussion
The participants confirmed that the activities could be implemented for some time by using the existing programs and initiatives by pooling resources, including the experts and practitioners, and building synergy.

The participants also discussed the importance of strengthening the capacity of government leaders, and youth in particular, who can conduct actions on the ground in Asia and the Pacific and deliver the voice of Asia and the Pacific to the global community.

(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Chief Manager, JWF  (Secretariat of the APWF))