Both ENDS
Our West-African partners in Integral Water Resource Management are rapidly taking steps forward. In Lomé (Togo) they have founded their own regional headquarters. The proud name of the center is ‘AfriwaterCoP’ ( Community of Practice). They strive to bring together stakeholders such as farmers, fishermen, companies and authorities for fair and sustainable use of river water. Slowly but surely they also convince more and more government officials that all these stakeholders should be able to think along and take part in the decision process. This should be adopted in rules and regulations of regional and national law in the concerning provinces and states.
Recently six volunteers travelled to Africa to conduct a research for Both ENDS on how the Negotiated Approach is put into practice within Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM).The Negotiated Approach is an approach that enables local communities to defend their rights and to propose strategies that fight poverty and ensure a viable ecosystem in the long run. The succes of the approach was already proven in India, yet little is known about Africa. But the report the volunteers are writing can bring about a change.
The Pantanal, in the heart of South America, at the border of Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay, is the world’s largest freshwater wetland with an extremely rich biodiversity. Tourism and fishing are the main sources of income for the local population. This enormous natural area is invaluable for the water management of a large part of the continent, stretching all the way down to the Argentinian La Plata area, some 1,500 kilometres away. The area faces many threats and Both ENDS therefore already started actively supporting local organisations striving to protect the Pantanal in 1994.
For decades, our local partner organisations have been developing and promoting effective ways to combat land degradation, desertification, and drought. This includes regions like the drylands, as well as forests, and wetlands. Supporting these locally-led actions is essential to reversing negative trends. For COP16, Drynet has developed 10 recommendations to strengthen the implementation of the UNCCD. Success at COP16 would mean turning these recommendations into action, fostering inclusive land governance and sustainable land management practices globally. By enabling locally-led actions—particularly those led by women, youth, pastoralists, and Indigenous Peoples—we can build a more resilient future.
Both ENDS has won the Innovation Award organized by the Dutch NGO PSO (Association for Staff Cooperation with Developing Countries). The Both ENDS project 'South-South learning through a new approach for River Basin Management' was one of three initiatives shortlisted from a total of 23. On 28 November a committee of experts congratulated Both ENDS with the prize.
Signed by ministers of Togo and Benin, the transboundary Mono River will now have an institutional structure to discuss the management of this basin: the Mono River Basin Authority (MBA). Based on our Negotiated Approach, our partner JVE has from the start successfully engaged in the set up of this authority, advocating for the inclusion of all stakeholders in the future decision-making processes of the MBA.
