5th World Water Forum

Local and Regional Authorities Days - Session on Good governance for Water and Sanitation

Istanbul, 18 March 2009 

Elements for the address of Piet Jansen, Rapporteur on water for the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe

First part – answer to the expert’s presentation

I am honoured to address the participants in this gathering of Local and Regional authorities on the occasion of the 5th World Water Forum, in my capacity of Rapporteur on Water of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.

Europe: when people talk about “Europe” they usually refer to the European Union and not the continent as a whole. When I speak about Europe, I refer to the 47 countries which constitute most of the European continent, the geographical Europe, the 47 member states of the Council of Europe.

Europe is not immune to the problems related to water issues. The stakes are high with some European regions experiencing high pressure on their water resources. An ever-increasing amount of water is required not only in towns and cities but also to produce food, energy and for industrial uses due to our unsustainable patterns of consumption.

Today in Europe, the value of water continues to be underestimated while the challenges we are facing are enormous, whether we consider climate change and adapting to its consequences, aging infrastructures, legislation or the proper sharing of responsibilities and devolution of powers for a more effective management of water.

Moreover, the uncertain future of water availability in the different regions of Europe and the complexity of the issues involved make it more than urgent that we move towards an integrated management and multi-sectoral approaches which will promote the sustainable use of our water resources. To meet the challenges, we must act decisively. And this is the spirit in which the Local and Regional Authorities, members of the Council of Europe’s Congress, work and sharing their experiences.

2nd part

Question: Europe is familiar with the entire range of approaches to water and sanitation management: from privatisation in Great Britain to the delegation of management in France and public enterprises in Italy. In your opinion, what are the issues that should govern the choice of management approach? Should management approaches not all address the same constraints?

When we consider water management, we should start with the understanding that good drinking water and sanitation are necessities of life and that they should be available for everyone. These are the basic conditions for a healthy and prosperous life.

Much of the crisis we are facing today is the result of human activities and the manner in which water is used and managed. The water crisis is also a crisis of governance making it imperative to ensure good governance at all levels as well as greater cooperation and sharing of responsabilities between different stakeholders, including the private and the public sector and civil society.

In my opinion, this common interest in water means involving public authorities in water management in one way or another.

There are many factors involved in determining the model of water delivery and sewer services, the most important ones being the amount, accessibility and condition of water resources as well as the level of economic and social development of the country and the current direction of national policy.

I have learned from European practices that more or less all are ruled by governmental policy. These different practices range from mere supervision to full ownership, but in essence the core values are or should be the same.

In the Congress; we advocate principles and core values that must be respected at all times:

The main principle is that control over service delivery must be exercised at the level closest to the citizen, which is regional and local. This means that responsibility for regulating these services must be delegated to regional and local authorities.

A second principal is that their opinion on the communities’ needs and service delivery in the communities must be fully taken into account in national policy-making.

Third and not least, local and regional authorities must be free to choose the model of service delivery which best suits the needs of their communities and their territories.

To these three principles, I would add four ‘core values’ to guide us when making choices for realising effective sustainable water management:

First, collective interest: we have the responsibility to serve everyone with water and sanitation.

Second, responsiveness: we must take action to meet the demands and face the challenges like climate change.

Third, fairness: we have to guarantee that water and sanitation are also available for the poor and that they never become profit-making activities.

         

Fourth, trust: with respect to water supply and sanitation we have to guarantee a stable and continued service of irreproachable quality.

Most importantly, the criteria of quality, efficiency, cost effectiveness and accessibility should remain the same at all times. However their correlation will change depending on the economic and social conditions in the community and the country, especially at a time of financial and economic crisis such as we are experiencing now.

Some communities may choose private companies in order to drive down their public debt or credit-dependency, others to take over the service delivery from companies that themselves need to be bailed out. But whatever the situation, the choice must belong to the public authorities of the given community, which must have the power to assert their responsibility over the services vis-à-vis both the private sector and national authorities.

Each core value can be safeguarded by combining institutional provisions and good practices (in the political arena). Good governance is a precondition for the successful and sustainable functioning of public managed water and sewer services.

Indeed, we need to foster a new water culture, a culture of sharing of responsibilities between all levels of governance; and we need to work together to reverse the negative trends that are worryingly apparent today. We need a clear division of competences, including both the public and private sectors, and we need to back up coherent water and sanitation policies with competent elected representatives and their staff, as well as competent educators in civil society.

3rd part: conclusion

Political leaders must look carefully at the issue of water and its quality, quantity, management, engineering and other needs. We must also develop initiatives that will empower our cooperation with all stakeholders, and that will seek and find ways to inform and involve the people whom we represent. A change in their attitude can and will make a big difference.

Indeed, integrated management calls for an increase in trust between those concerned and a joint learning process. Sustainability is not ecological romanticism; it is a matter of public health, safety and basic resources. These issues affect our daily life in our towns, cities and regions. The future well-being of our planet depends upon all of us working together to create a sustainable world where our finite natural resources are used wisely.

It is in this spirit that the Congress, which represents more than 200,000 European regions and municipalities, will continue playing a crucial role in ensuring that water resources are properly managed at the local and regional levels.