Africa 21 is pleased to co-organise with the Water Diplomat, a workshop in Nairobi on water issues in Africa for journalists from East Africa.
This workshop, in a hybrid format, is a follow-up to the workshop organised in Dakar in August 2022. It aims to ensure the follow-up of the 9th World Water Forum and to prepare African journalists for the UN Water Conference in New York from 22 to 24 March 2023.
English-speaking African journalists, or those who understand and speak English well enough, are invited to attend our workshop via Zoom.
You can register by emailing us at journalist@africa21.org and indicating your full name, whether or not you are a member of the Africa 21 Journalist Network, and the media you work for.
Here is the provisional programme for the workshop (The agenda is updated regularly) :
-The material used and the videos of the different sessions will be posted on this page as they become available.
Provisional agenda
(GMT+3) Time in Nairobi, Kenya
Monday 30 January
- 10 AM – 10:45 AM Opening ceremony
- Abdoulaye Sene, Executive Secretary of the 9th World Water Forum (online)
- Representative of the Kenyan Government [to be confirmed]
- Pim van der Male, First Secretary for Food Security & Water, Netherlands Embassy in Nairobi
- IPCC Representative (online)
- Prof. Patrick Maluki, Institute of Diplomacy and International Studies, University of Nairobi
- 11 AM – 1 PM Session 1 : Introduction: water diplomacy
- Dr. Tobias Schmitz, The Water Diplomat
- Dr. Boubacar Barry, Scientific Advisor to the Secretariat of the 9th World Water Forum in Dakar
- Mr. Sanoi Boyzoda, Representative of the Republic of Tajikistan to the executive committee of the international fund for saving the Aral Sea
- 2:30 PM – 4:30 PM Session 2: Water, a scarce resource? State of play and climate issues
- Dr. Aditi Mukherji, Coordinating Lead Author of the chapter on Water of the WGII report, IPCC (online)
- Expert to be confirmed
- 4:30 PM – 4:45 PM Conclusion : Dr. Tobias Schmitz, The Water Diplomat & Dr Boubacar Barry
Tuesday 31 January
- 10 AM – 1 PM Session 3: Access to drinking water, sanitation and African public policies
- Sustainable Development Goal 6, Dr. Tobias Schmitz, The Water Diplomat
- The human right to water and the obligations of the different States parties, Moez Allaoui, Advisor to the General Management, Société Nationale d’Exploitation et de Distribution des Eaux (SONEDE) Tunisia.
- Public policies for access to water in Africa :
- Urban environments and their water resources: Mr. Pireh Otieno, UN Habitat
- Richard Elelman, Acting Coordinator of the World Water Quality Alliance (UNEP)
- 2:30 PM – 4:30 PM Session 4: Managing water-related risks in Africa
- Josep De Trincheria, WASH Program Coordinator, IOM
- WASH in humanitarian emergencies : Julien Le Sourd, ICRC DRC
- The Roadmap WASH and the call to action on WASH in Fragile, Conflict and Violence settings: Jean Lapegue Action Contre la Faim
- 4:30 PM – 4:45 PM Conclusion : Dr. Tobias Schmitz, The Water Diplomat & Dr Boubacar Barry
Wednesday 1 February
- 10 AM – 12 PM Session 5: Water sector: economy, trade and employment
- Water in Nationally Determined Contributions by Simon Thuo, Alliance for Global Water Adaptation
- The Africa Investment Programme : Andrew Takawira, GWP (online)
- CEO Water Mandate : expert to be confirmed
- Field trip on the theme of water : visit to Limuru Water and Sewerage Company
Thursday 2 February
- Day of water-related field visits : TNC Upper Tana Nairobi Water Fund project area.
Friday 3 February
- 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM Session 6, Agriculture and the water issue
- Valere Nzeyimana, Senior Water Dev & Management Officer, FAO Regional Office for Africa (FAORAF) (online)
- Henrique Pacini, UNCTAD : Management of natural resources and in particular water in industry and agriculture (online)
- 2 PM – 3:30 PM Closing session, Towards a transboundary approach to water management and key messages for New York
- Rémy Kinna, UNECE Water Conventions Secretariat (online)
- Aïda Diongue-Niang & Dr Olago, IPCC (online)
- 3:30 PM – 3:45 PM Conclusion : Dr. Tobias Schmitz, The Water Diplomat
- 4 PM – 5:30 PM Editorial conference : Presentation of the different journalists’ projects and peer review.
We thank our partners for making this workshop possible:
