Brazil Praised by UN for Its Water Management

The Brazilian water management model is considered an example by the United Nations Organization. According to a UN report, to be released this Wednesday, March 22, during the 4th World Water Forum (WWF), in Mexico, Brazil is one of the 14 nations that have presented important advances in their water policies, in the last three years.

108 countries were analyzed, including nine from South America. "Brazil is cited in the report explicitly as an example of progress in the integrated management of water resources, although we know there is still a lot to be done," says UNESCO’s Science and Environment Coordinator in Brazil, Celso Schenkel. UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.

Produced by the UNESCO-supported World Water Assessment Program, the report presents a detailed analysis about the condition of water resources in the planet, and analyzes the progresses of the water Millennium Development Goals.

It also evaluates aspects such as population growth, urbanization, ecosystem change, food production, health, industry and energy. It makes recommendations to guide and encourage future measures about the use, productivity, and sustainable management of drinking water resources.

Schenkel explains that the report emphasizes that only global cooperation can ensure an integrated and sustainable management of the water.

In its second edition entitled "Water: a shared responsibility," the publication was released one week before the 4th WWF. Brazil is the only South American country singled out by the UN.

"Since the establishment of a National Water Resource Policy, the Water Law, in 1997, Brazil has advanced in the construction of participative management institutional instruments, and in the consolidation of national plans and programs", says the UN representative.

He cites as fundamental advances, the creation of the National Water Agency, of State Water Agencies, and the development of a Water National Plan (PNRH).

Launched on March 3rd, the PNRH presents a set of directives, goals and programs to ensure rational water use in Brazil until 2020. The document is the result of two and a half years of discussions, among approximately 7,000 people from several segments of society.

Schenkel believes that the UN recognition of the policies implemented by Brazilian government entitles the country to lead a process of shared basins and integrated management of water resources in South America.

Agência Brasil

Tags:

You May Also Like

Greenpeace Calls Deforestation in Brazil a National Shame

Greenpeace reacted with condemnation and outrage to the new Amazon deforestation figures released by ...

4.1% of Brazil’s Exports Go to Arab Countries

Between January and March, Brazilian exports to the 22 countries that comprise the Arab ...

Brazil Wonders How to Educate Its Indians

Brazil’s Ministry of Education (MEC) is sponsoring a comprehensive debate on education and indigenous communities. ...

Black Wednesday Knocks Brazil Markets Down 5%

It was Brazil stock market's second worst day this year. Battered by a widespread ...

G-7 Can’t Solve Global Crisis Without G-20’s Help, Says Brazil’s Lula

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the president of Brazil, called this weekend for coordinated ...

Brazilian Market Keeps On Losing Ground on Fears of Rising US Inflation

Latin American stocks were mixed to lower, with Brazilian and Mexican shares sinking on ...

You Know You Are Brazilian When You Know Who Santos Dumont Is and When…

* You applaud the pilot when the airplane lands. You also applaud the band ...

Rio, Brazil, street kid searches for lost coins under the drain

When I See What’s Going on in Brazil I Feel Like Picking Up a Gun

They come every trash day. A black man in his twenties and his son, ...

An ATM machine in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

Dealing with ATM Machines in Brazil Is Easier Said than Done

In my previous article I wrote about the difficulties of withdrawing money at ATMs ...

Brazil Spurned by Hollywood

Brazil’s Cidade de Deus was shunned because it did not fit into the make-believe ...