It provides water for domestic, agricultural, industrial, and environmental purposes as well as for managing fl oods and droughts. A Rainwater Partnership that brings together leading organisations involved in the advocacy and implementation of rainwater harvesting was formed in The Netherlands, on October 8th 2004.

The Partnership promotes mainstreaming of rainwater into water policies and strategies within the integrated water resources management (IWRM). This should result in the allocation of necessary fi nancial, human and institutional resources for its use. We, together with the Rainwater Partnership, therefore urge that: The CSD 13 adopts rainwater harvesting as a critical freshwater resource, a primary option in water development and use and, includes it in all its water polices and strategies;.

• Governments adopt rainwater harvesting in their water polices and strategies;
• Governments allocate adequate human, fi nancial and institutional resources for implementing rainwater harvesting.