Bangladesh has been elected as the Vice-President of the UN 2023 Water Conference which started on Wednesday (Mar 22) at the UN Headquarters.
The result was formally announced today during opening of the Conference, said the Bangladesh Permanent Mission to New York.
This is the first UN water conference in a generation which aims to mobilize Member States, the UN system and all relevant stakeholders to take action and bring successful solutions to global water agenda.
Following the election, the Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations in New York Ambassador Muhammad Abdul Muhith said that this Vice-Presidency comes as recognition to the trust and confidence of the global community on the able leadership of Bangladesh to the work of the United Nations.
This will allow Bangladesh to support the global efforts to take concerted action to achieve the internationally agreed water- related goals and targets, including those contained in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
It will provide an opportunity for us to pursue our national priorities in the global water agenda, Ambassador Muhith further added.
The Conference is being attended by Heads of States and Ministers from UN Members States.
Meanwhile, to implement the water action agenda under Sustainable Development Goals, Bangladesh called upon the development partners and international financial institutions to enhance the international financial support to the countries in need.
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said on Wednesday (Mar 22) while speaking at the general debate of the UN 2023 Water Conference at the UN Headquarters.
Referring to the national policies of Bangladesh on UN water action agenda, Foreign Minister stated that Bangladesh attaches high importance to sustainable management of its water resources in order to support its long-term development plan.
He said, “under the visionary leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, our government has initiated a 100-year plan titled ‘Bangladesh Delta Plan-2100’ and formulated ‘Bangladesh Water Act 2013’ for building a resilient delta through sound integrated water resources management (IWRM).
In his remarks, Foreign Minister particularly expressed his concern over the limited international financing available for water related climate adaptation.
In this regard, he urged the global community to step up efforts for enhanced international financing for sustainable water management including adaptation financing.
The Conference, co-hosted by the Governments of Tajikistan and the Netherlands, features an opening and closing ceremony, six plenary meetings and five multi-stakeholder interactive dialogues. Foreign Minister delivered keynote in interactive dialogue-2 entitled “Water for Sustainable Development: Valuing Water, Water-Energy-Food Nexus, and Sustainable Economic and Urban Development” and opening statement in another side event entitled “Water Solutions for Climate Adaptation: Lessons to Scale up Impactful Delivery” organized by the Global Center on Adaptation, Government of the Netherlands and African Development Bank.
The Foreign Minister of Bangladesh AK Abdul Momen, is leading a 13-member Bangladesh delegation including the State Minister for Water Resources Zaheed Farooque, MP to the Conference to be held on 22-24 March 2023.
