Mexico to Oversee Unesco’s International Hydrological Program

laht.com

MEXICO CITY – Mexico has been chosen to head the inter-governmental council that oversees UNESCO’s International Hydrological Program, or IHP, officials said.

The director of Mexico’s National Water Commission, or Conagua, David Korenfeld, was named the council’s president for the next two years, Mexico’s Environment Secretariat and Foreign Relations Secretariat said in a joint statement.

In his acceptance speech, Korenfeld said “improving the management and administration of water resources requires evolving toward a new stage of greater synergy between decision makers and specialists to combine theory and practice.”

Although great strides have been made in the water sector, significant challenges remain, including integral basin management, application of the human right to water and water security and sustainability in the context of climate change, he said.

Korenfeld said, therefore, that he will work to strengthen IHP’s national committees through mechanisms that ensure they have the necessary funds for their optimal and self-sufficient development.

He also said efforts will be carried out to strengthen international ties in the technical and scientific area and consolidate cooperation schemes.

These actions will enable a confluence of science, technology and public policy aimed at reducing the social and environmental vulnerability of emerging and developing countries amid the challenges of climate change.

The inter-governmental council is in charge of planning and defining the priorities of the IHP and supervising its execution.

The IHP is the only inter-governmental program of the U.N. system devoted to water research, water-resources management, and education and capacity building.