Canada
CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY
SOUS RESERVE DE MODIFICATION
STATEMENT BY
HON. DAVID ANDERSON
MINISTER OF THE ENVIRONMENT
TO THE TWELFTH SESSION OF
THE COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Meeting basic needs in water, sanitation and human Settlements, with a
particular focus on water
NEW YORK, APRIL 29, 2004
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ALLOCUTION DE
L'HON. DAVID ANDERSON
MINISTRE DE L'ENVIRONNEMENT
A LA DOUZIEME SESSION DE
LA COMMISSION DU DEVELOPPEMENT DURABLE
Satisfaction des besoins fondamentaux en matiere d'eau, d'assainissement et
d'etablissements humains, accordant une importance particuliere a 1'eau
NEW YORK, LE 29 AVRIL 2004
Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations ? Mission permanente du Canada aupres des Nations Unies
885 Second Avenue, 14th Floor ? New York, N.Y. 10017 ? Telephone (212) 848-1100 ? Facsimile (212) 848-1195
http://www.un.int/canada
1
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Building on my comments yesterday and this morning regarding translating our
commitments into action, and partnerships, I would like to focus now on governance at the local
level, and financing .
With respect to local governance, many countries and UN agencies have identified
community-level involvement as a critical element of water management . I strongly agree - it
leads to a better result when local communities, including indigenous people and civil society,
are involved in the design phase, as well as implementation . Canada's long experience with
international programming has helped us discover what works . So, what lessons have we
learned?
One, because good governance at all levels is essential to addressing the emerging
water crisis, nearly 50 per cent of our development assistance work on water and sanitation is
focused on governance issues.
Two, for water-related development initiatives to be effective and lasting,
countries - both developed and developing - must commit human and financial resources to
sustainable water management. Developed countries, in particular, should be prepared to provide
training and technical assistance, in addition to financing, if requested .
One such example in Canada is the UN University on International Network on
Water, Environment and Health which responds to developing country demand for capacity
building to improve water management in low-income countries .
Third, water supply and sanitation initiatives can mobilize and empower a
community - in particular, the women of the community - which in turn leads to those
communities being better able to take charge of other development activities . Recognizing the
difference that an empowered community can make is at the heart of the Equator Initiative that I
described this morning. In other words, a water initiative at the community level can be a small
start that leads to something much larger for poverty alleviation .
On the issue of financing, Canada has also learned the critical importance of
responding to developing countries' priorities, and working with local institutions .
We've put this into practice in our response to African water priorities, through the
Canada Fund for Africa. One of our key projects is to support the African Water Facility, and
you have heard already the importance that Africa places on this initiative . Another Canada
Fund for Africa project is focussed on strengthening the African Development Bank's capacity to
apply IWRM principles and to promote best water management practices .
The Commission on Sustainable Development must become a catalyst for action
to translate international agreements into political will and concrete action on the ground . This
must be part of our advice, as we proceed through this review session to CSD-13 .
We now have just over a decade left until 2015 . Let's use this Commission to
move forward, quickly .
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
