2021 was a transformative year for the Women in Water Diplomacy Network with the launch of our new Leadership Council, the Nile and Beyond Strategy process, the Central Asia-Afghanistan Network and so much more! Here is an overview of what happened at a global level.

Sharing Women in Water Diplomacy Network Experience at ‘People and Planet 2021’ MENA Hub

March 2021

SIWI was invited by the Swedish Dialogue Institute for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), together with other partners to share experience with regards to the Women in Water Diplomacy Network in the Nile as part of the 2021 SIDA Global Learning Experience ‘People and Planet’ MENA Hub. The MENA Hub focused on challenges of gender, climate, and environment in the context of the MENA region and was attended by a diverse group of research and civil society organizations. SIWI’s Elizabeth A. Yaari shared experience on design of gender equality mainstreaming and targeted engagements specific to water diplomacy processes with a focus on the Women in Water Diplomacy Network in the Nile. Elizabeth highlighted that the Nile Network seeks to elevate women as decision makers and agents of change and while to date has been solely focused on women’s engagement in 2021 will intentionally begin to partner and engage male champions in the efforts. During the three days of learning new studies from the UN on Gender, Climate and Security and a ‘Comparative Study on Empowering Women in Water Diplomacy in the MENA’ from Global Water Partnership and the Geneva Water Hub were presented and discussed. Follow the above link to watch the Comparative Study’s March 2021 launch webinar featuring Dr Tahani Sileet, one of the study’s co-authors and Member of the Women in Water Diplomacy Network.

Read the full summary of this knowledge exchange event from SDI

Elevating Women Water Diplomats at the World Water Week 2021

August 24, 2021

The 2021 Online World Water Week provided an opportunity for global networking and knowledge exchange for the entire water sector – including for the Women in Water Diplomacy Network members. All Network Members were invited to take an active participation in the online World Water Week and provided with the 2021 Unofficial Guide to Water Cooperation at the World Water Week produced by SIWI to plan their week of knowledge exchange and networking. The 2021 High-level Panel on Water Diplomacy ‘Navigating to a Resilient Future’ included the inspirational call to action from Ms. Karabo Mokgonyana, the African Union’s Youth Ambassador for Peace who highlighted the important role of women and young people to bringing new perspectives and solutions to water diplomacy dialogues and negotiations. To learn more about the outcomes and key messages of the 2021 High Level Panel on Water Diplomacy please read this SIWI blog ‘High Level Panel on How to Put Words into Action’ by Katie Goldie-Ryder and Dr Kyungmee Kim.

Interactive online water diplomacy and negotiations training session convened by Global Water Partnership (GWP) and SIWI

November 2021

Women in Water Diplomacy Network Members and Process Support Team members were featured participants in the November 16, 2021 water diplomacy and negotiation online training convened jointly by SIWI and the Global Water Partnership (GWP) as part of the ‘Transboundary Freshwater Security Train’ supporting the Mass Open Online Course (MOOC) on Governance for transboundary Freshwater Security launched by GWP, GEF IW:Learn and partners in 2020. The event served as an engaging opportunity to share lessons around transboundary water resources cooperation and negotiation mechanisms over shared waters from a variety of challenging contexts.

See the recap of the session, a recording of the event, and the full set of slides is available on GWP’s website: Empowering participants with techniques to resolve water conflicts – GWP