The declarations of the 5th WWF

Various declarations were issued during this World Water Forum in Istanbul. Here are a few links to the original texts, or copies of them.

First of all, the official 5th WWF ministerial declaration. This text is non-binding but could have had a significant political weight on the diplomatic scene. This will unfortunately not happen due to the opposition of some states (USA, Brazil and Egypt at least): the declaration only mentions water as a "human need" and not as a "human right", as several delegations have asked for. The general feeling at the end of the forum was disappointment: the conclusions are far from meeting the stakes mentioned in the UNESCO's World Water Assessment Program, published at the beginning of the Forum.

In reaction, several countries have agreed on signing two complementary declarations. Bolivia, Venezuela and Ecuador have played a key role in coordinating the negotiations.

The first declaration says that

"We recognize that access to water and sanitation is a human right and we are committed to all necessary actions for the progressive implementation of this right",

and has been signed by 25 countries so far (the list is not complete yet as more countries can join in):

Bangladesh
Benin
Bolivia
Cameroon
Chad
Chile
Cuba
Ecuador
Ethiopia
Guatemala
Honduras
Morocco
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria
Panama
Paraguay
Senegal
South Africa
Spain
Sri Lanka
United Arab Emirates
Uruguay
Venezuela

Switzerland has declared its support although a formal signature will
take months to finalize.

The second one is extremely important as it is a direct challenge of the World Water Council's legitimacy as an organiser for such an event. It adds the following paragraph to the above-mentioned declaration:

"We call on States to develop a global water forum within the framework of the United Nations, based on the principles of democracy, full participation, equity, transparency and social inclusion."

And it has been signed by 15 countries so far (the list is not definitive as well)

Benin
Bolivia
Cameroon
Chad
Chile
Cuba
Ecuador
Ethiopia
Honduras
Nigeria
Panama
Paraguay
Senegal
Sri Lanka
United Arab Emirates
Venezuela


Two other declarations were issued during the Forum, the Youth declaration and the "Istanbul Water Consensus For Local and Regional Authorities" (both declarations say that access to water and sanitation is a human right, but their legal value is null).