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Water Many international forums have devoted significant time and effort to develop goals, objectives and targets for water resources management. These forums include UNEP Governing Council; the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, and its outcome, Agenda 21; the Millennium Summit; the World Summit on Sustainable Development; and of the twelfth and thirteenth sessions of the Commission on Sustainable Development. Those forums have indicated, and in the case of the Governing Council defined, the mandates and responsibilities of UNEP in the area of water. Following GC Decision 23/2, a final draft of the updated water policy and strategy of UNEP will be discussed at the next GC/GMEF.
Please click here for other GC Decisions on water Presentation on the water policy and strategy of UNEP (2006) Water assessment and policies Less than one percent of the water on Earth is in lakes, rivers, wetlands, and shallow aquifers that are available for human use. The annual replenishment of these systems constitutes the renewable water supply; humans consume approximately 10 percent of this supply annually. Yet only 15 percent of people worldwide live in relative water abundance (WRI, 2006).
Integrated water resources management According to Chapter 18 of Agenda 21 on freshwater, “the primary objective is to ensure that an adequate quantity of water of good quality is maintained for human activities and also for the proper functioning of ecosystems". In this context, it " identifies integrated water resources management as the means to satisfy freshwater needs for sustainable development through interactive, multisectoral approaches firmly grounded in institutional, legal and financial frameworks”. In 2004, under the initiative of UNEP, the Rainwater Partnership was established to promote and mainstream rainwater harvesting activities, within the integrated water resources management framework.
Ecosystems approach “All UNEP work in water resources management is founded in ecosystems based approaches. Ecosystem-based approaches factor in the full range of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, looking at the basin as a whole in both its upstream and downstream dimensions, including, among other things, specific ecosystems such as forests, land, wetlands, urban ecosystems and coastal zones. Though this concept normally conjures up thoughts of surface water, it also includes groundwater. Similarly, the interface between freshwater and coastal ecosystems must also be taken into consideration in management plans for both types of system. Ecosystem approaches recognize the social, cultural, economic and environmental needs for sustainable water resource management. Founded in these ecosystem considerations, UNEP will ensure that the full hydrological cycle within each hydrological basin is taken into consideration in assessment and management plans” (GC Decision 23/2).
When women’s and men’s roles are considered in the use, administration, and conservation of water resources, the links between people and the natural resources they depend upon become clearer (IUCN). Taking gender issues into consideration allows for a better understanding of the interaction of water with other natural and socioeconomic systems, a pre-requisite for integrated water resources management.
Water and the millennium development goals
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Since its establishment, UNEP has worked in the area of water resources assessment and management, promoting the application of collaborative approaches to water resources management. After over 30 years, water remains one of the main priorities of UNEP. 
