Water-Energy-Ecosystems Nexus (WEEN) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), Federal Republic of Germany; Ministry for the Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD), Democratic Republic of Congo
(
Government
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#SDGAction50309
Description
This is a joint commitment of the Ministry for the Environment and Sustainable Development of the Democratic Republic of Congo (MEDD) and the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV). In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), rapid population growth, overexploitation of natural resources and the impacts of climate change require balancing key objectives such as the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the conservation of carbon sinks and other ecosystems, the resilience and well-being of local communities and the development of the country's vital sectors. Water is the link between all these objectives and the establishment of integrated water resources management in the DRC is paramount to achieving the national ambitions for economic, social and environmental development. A better understanding of these complex interrelationships and a balance between the needs of the various stakeholders, the water demands of the different sectors and local policy decisions are needed. The project aims to establish and implement a Nexus approach between integrated water resources management, conservation of ecosystems and their services for climate change mitigation and adaptation, and the multiple uses of water that are important for the country's development, such as green energy supply (the Water-Energy-Ecosystem Nexus, in short WEEN). The project follows a multi-level governance approach: at national, sub-basin and local level. At the national level, the strengthening of decision-makers with a key role in the implementation of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), and their cooperation with the Ministries of Energy and Environment will be supported. In agreement with and at the request of the relevant stakeholders, the project will be able to offer assistance to the Congolese Government to accede to the United Nations Water Convention. At the level of a 'flagship' sub-basin, the project will support the establishment of an information system to improve the database for evidence-based decision making. The project promotes the introduction of innovative technologies, tools and methodologies for integrated water resources management. This approach will enhance long-term sustainability, climate resilience and GHG mitigation in the sub-basin, while improving framework conditions such as the accurate and timely provision of relevant data. Good practices and expertise will be promoted through exchange at national and international level and embedded in the institutional structures of national stakeholders. To accelerate the implementation of climate-sensitive IWRM and WEEN approaches at national, sub-basin and local levels, increased resilience against climate change and enhanced adaptation capacity will be enabled through: improved availability and sharing of data and information (output 1), strengthened capacity and skills for data analysis and decision-making (output 2), improved multi-sectoral coordination mechanisms (output 3) as well as improved framework conditions for scaling-up (output 4).
The project supports the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the implementation of its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to achieve the climate objectives of the Paris Agreement (2015), the National Climate Adaptation Plan (2022-2026) and the National Strategic Development Plan (2032-2027). The project is expected to bring about a paradigm shift away from a separate and sector-oriented approach towards a holistic view of the complexity of all natural resources, reflecting the interlinkages between water resources and relevant ecosystems, and thus promoting synergies and reducing trade-offs. Both IWRM and WEEN approaches will be central to supporting actors at national, sub-basin and local levels to ensure that enhanced long-term resilience against the impacts of climate change is safeguarded, while the mitigation objectives and development needs of the target population (e.g. access to sustainable energy, food and water security, poverty reduction) are met. The involvement of local civil society organisations as well as the private sector will be crucial for substantial innovation, overcoming use and management conflicts in the selected sub-basin. The project will particularly address the needs and challenges of women and vulnerable groups (indigenous people and youth) and strengthen their role in the implementation of the IWRM approach through active participation in the decision-making process at local and sub-basin level. The project contributes to low-carbon development, increased resilience to climate change and enhanced adaptation capacity (SDG 13), protects and conserves biodiversity and ecosystem services in the selected sub-basin (SDG 15), contributes to the sustainable supply and management of water (SDG 6) and energy (SDG 7) resources for the population, and places particular emphasis on the involvement of women (SDG 5) as well as vulnerable groups.
National and provincial service providers River basin agencies Local communities Non-governmental organisations Scientific community
The commitment contributes to Themes 2 (Water for Sustainable Development) and 3 (Water for Climate, Resilience, and Environment) of the UN 2023 Water Conference and addresses all 5 accelerators under the SDG 6 Global Acceleration Framework.
SDGS & Targets
Goal 5
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
5.1
End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
5.1.1
Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce and monitor equality and non‑discrimination on the basis of sex
5.2
5.2.1
Proportion of ever-partnered women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to physical, sexual or psychological violence by a current or former intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by form of violence and by age
5.2.2
Proportion of women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to sexual violence by persons other than an intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by age and place of occurrence
5.3
5.3.1
Proportion of women aged 20-24 years who were married or in a union before age 15 and before age 18
5.3.2
Proportion of girls and women aged 15-49 years who have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting, by age
5.4
Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate
5.4.1
Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location
5.5
Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life
5.5.1
Proportion of seats held by women in (a) national parliaments and (b) local governments
5.5.2
Proportion of women in managerial positions
5.6
Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences
5.6.1
Proportion of women aged 15-49 years who make their own informed decisions regarding sexual relations, contraceptive use and reproductive health care
5.6.2
Number of countries with laws and regulations that guarantee full and equal access to women and men aged 15 years and older to sexual and reproductive health care, information and education
5.a
Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and natural resources, in accordance with national laws
5.a.1
(a) Proportion of total agricultural population with ownership or secure rights over agricultural land, by sex; and (b) share of women among owners or rights-bearers of agricultural land, by type of tenure
5.a.2
Proportion of countries where the legal framework (including customary law) guarantees women’s equal rights to land ownership and/or control
5.b
5.b.1
Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex
5.c
Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels
5.c.1
Proportion of countries with systems to track and make public allocations for gender equality and women’s empowerment
Goal 6
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
6.1
By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all
6.1.1
Proportion of population using safely managed drinking water services
6.2
By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations
6.2.1
Proportion of population using (a) safely managed sanitation services and (b) a hand-washing facility with soap and water
6.3
By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally
6.3.1
Proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater flows safely treated
6.3.2
Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality
6.4
6.4.1
Change in water-use efficiency over time
6.4.2
Level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources
6.5
By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate
6.5.1
Degree of integrated water resources management
6.5.2
Proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation
6.6
6.6.1
Change in the extent of water-related ecosystems over time
6.a
6.a.1
Amount of water- and sanitation-related official development assistance that is part of a government-coordinated spending plan
6.b
Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management
6.b.1
Proportion of local administrative units with established and operational policies and procedures for participation of local communities in water and sanitation management
Goal 7
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
7.1
By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services
7.1.1
Proportion of population with access to electricity
7.1.2
Proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology
7.2
7.2.1
Renewable energy share in the total final energy consumption
7.3
7.3.1
Energy intensity measured in terms of primary energy and GDP
7.a
7.a.1
International financial flows to developing countries in support of clean energy research and development and renewable energy production, including in hybrid systems
7.b
By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support
7.b.1
Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing and developed countries (in watts per capita)
Goal 13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
13.1
Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
13.1.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
13.1.2
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
13.1.3
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
13.2
Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
13.2.1
Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
13.2.2
Total greenhouse gas emissions per year
13.3
Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
13.3.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
13.a
Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible
13.a.1
Amounts provided and mobilized in United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025
13.b
Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities
13.b.1
Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Goal 15
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
15.1
By 2020, ensure the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems and their services, in particular forests, wetlands, mountains and drylands, in line with obligations under international agreements
15.1.1
15.1.2
15.2
By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests, halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and substantially increase afforestation and reforestation globally
15.2.1
15.3
By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world
15.3.1
15.4
By 2030, ensure the conservation of mountain ecosystems, including their biodiversity, in order to enhance their capacity to provide benefits that are essential for sustainable development
15.4.1
15.4.2
15.5
Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity and, by 2020, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species
15.5.1
15.6
Promote fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and promote appropriate access to such resources, as internationally agreed
15.6.1
15.7
Take urgent action to end poaching and trafficking of protected species of flora and fauna and address both demand and supply of illegal wildlife products
15.7.1
15.8
By 2020, introduce measures to prevent the introduction and significantly reduce the impact of invasive alien species on land and water ecosystems and control or eradicate the priority species
15.8.1
15.9
By 2020, integrate ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes, poverty reduction strategies and accounts
15.9.1
(a) Number of countries that have established national targets in accordance with or similar to Aichi Biodiversity Target 2 of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011–2020 in their national biodiversity strategy and action plans and the progress reported towards these targets; and (b) integration of biodiversity into national accounting and reporting systems, defined as implementation of the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting
15.a
Mobilize and significantly increase financial resources from all sources to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity and ecosystems
15.a.1
(a) Official development assistance on conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity; and (b) revenue generated and finance mobilized from biodiversity-relevant economic instruments
15.b
Mobilize significant resources from all sources and at all levels to finance sustainable forest management and provide adequate incentives to developing countries to advance such management, including for conservation and reforestation
15.b.1
(a) Official development assistance on conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity; and (b) revenue generated and finance mobilized from biodiversity-relevant economic instruments
15.c
Enhance global support for efforts to combat poaching and trafficking of protected species, including by increasing the capacity of local communities to pursue sustainable livelihood opportunities
15.c.1
SDG 14 targets covered
Deliverables & Timeline
Availability and sharing of data and information at national and sub-basin levels is improved
Capacities and skills for data analysis, decision making and integration of IWRM/WEE-Nexus into land and resource use planning are strengthened
Multi-sectoral coordination mechanisms are improved, preventing and reconciling divergent interests and conflicts between sectors (water, energy, agroforestry)
Framework conditions for scaling up IWRM and WEE-Nexus approaches are improved
Resources mobilized
Partnership Progress
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Timeline
Entity
Region
- Africa
Other beneficiaries
Stakeholders in the water, energy and socio-economic sectors Local community Regional community Stakeholders in the ecosystem goods and services sector
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Countries
Contact Information
Janine, Policy Officer