Blog.Dec 08, 2022

Co-creating a Global Strategy: Women in Water Diplomacy Global Strategy Consultation Process

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Woman in orange shirt with bright blue braids and pink lipstick with a broad smile
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Julienne Ndjiki
Programme Officer,
Transboundary Water Cooperation

2022 has been a pivotal year in the development of the Women in Water Diplomacy Network. Not only is it the first year of tenure of the Leadership Council, but the Council successfully co-created and launched the five-year Women in Water Diplomacy Global Strategy.

9 Members of the Women in Water Diplomacy pausing with the new network strategy
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The more than six-month consultation process around the Global Strategy consisted of several Network strategy consultations and partnership engagements led by the Leadership Council and the SIWI Process Support Team. International Women’s Day on March 8, 2022 constituted a key milestone in this process, as key partners from across Africa – including sector leaders from the World Bank’s Cooperation International Waters Africa (CIWA) partnership, the United States Agency for international Development (USAID), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), the Government of the Netherlands, Global Water Partnership (GWP), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), The Zambezi Watercourse Commission (ZAMCOM), The Orange-Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM), and the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM) – came together.

Shortly thereafter, the Leadership Council, the Nile Network and the Women in Water Management in Central Asia & Afghanistan Network convened for an inter-basin strategy meeting. This provided an opportunity for both networks to harmonise their understanding of the core objectives and endorse the Global Strategy.

The broad efforts of the members and supporters of the Women in Water Diplomacy Network to identify common priorities and articulate a shared vision through the strategy consultation process serves as a critical guide to achieving Network objectives at sub-national, national, basin and global levels.