SIWI and ICWC referenced as important for maintaining peace in UN Security Council briefing

SIWI and UNESCO International Centre for Water Cooperation, hosted by SIWI, were referenced as important actors by Sweden and United States in a Security Council briefing on Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Preventive Diplomacy and Transboundary Waters

SIWI and UNESCO International Centre for Water Cooperation, hosted by SIWI, were cited as important actors in maintaining international peace and security at a Security Council briefing earlier this week.

SIWI’s role in water diplomacy was once again raised as important in maintaining peace and cooperation at the UN. Early this week the Security Council held a briefing on Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Preventive Diplomacy and Transboundary Waters where Sweden’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Development Cooperation, Isabella Lövin, as well as the United States Mission to the UN cited SIWI and its work in water diplomacy as important in maintaining international peace and security.

In recent years water cooperation has gained traction as an important tool in peace building. In the opening remarks of the special briefing UN Secretary General, António Guterres, stressed the importance of water as a catalyst for cooperation. SIWI’s work in water cooperation has also grown though our work in water diplomacy, initiatives such as the Shared Waters Partnership, and our hosting of the International Centre for Water Cooperation.

The International Centre for Water Cooperation is the first UNESCO Category II Centre in Sweden, and the first in the world to focus on transboundary water management in connection with peace, conflict and regional development.