Africa

Assessment of transboundary Freshwater Vulnerability in Africa to Climate Change
There is increasing certainty in some climate projections for Africa, with consensus between the major general circulation models (GCMs) and the regional circulation models (RCMs) emerging for many parts of the continent. Points of consensus are that temperature increases are very likely during this century, with increases of 1-3 oC by 2050, depending on emissions scenario. This warming is more than the rest of the world is likely to experience and will occur across all seasons, with the interior warming more than the coastal regions, and temperature increases in the drier sub-tropics greater than in the moist tropics.

Projections of rainfall variation are more variable, although consensus is emerging for a decreased mean annual rainfall in much of Mediterranean Africa and the northern Sahara, with the likelihood of a decrease in rainfall increasing as the Mediterranean coast is approached. Similarly, rainfall in southern Africa is likely to decrease in the south west and on the western margins. These rainfall decreases are in the winter rainfall regions, with rain associated with the mid-latitude fronts and the winter equatorial shifts of the westerlies. Much uncertainty exists in climate projections for seasons in Africa. Even within the areas outlined, the localized effects driven by local topographic conditions or vegetation feedbacks remain uncertain. These effects may be significant, as they often occur in high rainfall headwater catchments that generate the bulk of run-off. 

The key response to this must be to build resilience at the house hold level, community level, national level, and transboundary or regional level.

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AFRICA-ASIA Summary

Freshwater under Threat: Vulnerability Assessment of Freshwater Resources to Environmental Change - Africa-Asia Summary
After carrying out similar assessments in Africa and Asia, an attempt was made by experts from the two regions who exchanged experiences and networked among the themselves on the subject area. It was decided that a summary be written that will assist decision makers in the two continents note similarities in vulnerabilities of their water resources.

This summary establishes the fact that freshwater resources and sustainable development are strongly interdependent. Africa and Asia’s dependence on natural resources makes their people most vulnerable to environmental change. This vulnerability includes both natural and human phenomena, including climate change and variability, pollution, population growth, competition for water resources data availability and quality, and knowledge gaps.
For both continents, ecosystems are already endangered, threatening the livelihoods of the many poor who are least capable of adapting to environmental change. Available fresh water resources continue to decline as a result of excessive withdrawal of surface and ground water, as well as decreased water runoff from the land surface increasingly attributed to climate change. Use of freshwater for agriculture, industry and energy has increased markedly over the last 50 years. Human water use exceeds the average annual natural water replenishment. This assessment will be of great interest to governments in both regions and will help the policy makers with decision making at various levels of affected communities. It will offer useful insights into critical freshwater issues and how they could be adapted to and mitigated.

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Africa

Freshwater under Threat: Vulnerability Assessment of Freshwater Resources to Environmental Change - Africa
This publication documents an assessment of a selected forty one (41) vulnerable water resources in five regions on Africa i.e. Southern, Western, Eastern, Central, Northern and the Western Indian Ocean Island States, subjected to various environmental changes. The study indicates that Africa’s water resources are already facing serious risks, with the situation expected to get worse. What is not clear in these reports and that requires undertaking further comprehensive assessment is information and data that will inform freshwater managers of the vulnerability risks from climate change at various levels i.e. of  river/lake/groundwater basins and the socio-economic aspect. This may require expanding the network of researchers.

The assessment establishes that there is a relationship between climate change and freshwater since climate affects hydrological cycles at geographical scales from global to local. Changes in precipitation are already leading to more frequent and devastating droughts and floods, changes in the replenishment of groundwater   resources, variation in the surface flow of rivers, alterations in the water levels of lakes, and high evaporation rates through out the fresh water hydrological systems.It shows that Africa as a whole is a very minor contributor to the recognized drivers (greenhouse gas) that are leading to climate change. It is the poorest countries and people in Africa who will likely suffer first and most from the adverse effects of climate change. African governments must therefore continue to press vigorously in the UN and other fora for developed countries to reduce their greenhouses gas emissions and to meet and even exceed the internationally agreed targets and timetable. Adaptation and mitigation issues are indicated but not covered in depth.
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Asia

FRESHWATER under THREAT: Vulnerability Assessment of Freshwater Resources to Environmental change - North East Asia
As part of UNEP’s global initiative on assessment of vulnerability of freshwater resources under a changing global climate, this report summarizes the results from an in-depth vulnerability assessment of freshwater resources in the Northeast Asia sub-region, including a general introduction to the sub-region and the main characteristics of its freshwater resources, including all the countries in the sub-region, and an in-depth synthesis of vulnerability  assessment case studies, which are attached to this report as appendixes. The main findings of this assessment indicate that the changes in the hydrosphere can hinder achievements of clean water, health, food security targets of the Millennium development Goals (MDGs) and damage ecosystem health and services as well as having socio-economic impacts.

The vulnerability assessment of Northeast Asia sub-region, is indicates the changes in fresh water resources over the last five decades for five major selected river basins: Changjiang (Yangtze) river, Huanghe (yellow) river, Orkhon river, Songliao basin and Tuul river.  It further reveals that available fresh water resources continue to decline as a result of excessive withdrawal of surface –and ground water, as well as decreased water runoff from the land surface attributed to climate change. Innovative basin level policy intervention are needed for each river basin to reduce vulnerability to environmental change, and optimize services for future development .This report will be useful resource for decision makers and other stake holders to understand the important and urgent need for Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) in Northeast Asia.
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FRESHWATER under THREAT: Vulnerability Assessment of Freshwater Resources to Environmental Change - South East Asia
Even though South East Asia is endowed with abundant water resources, the region’s major river basins are under considerable pressure from raising human numbers and economic activities. It is in this context that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) joined hands with a number of regional partners from Africa and Asia to address the issue of vulnerability of fresh water resources to Environment changes in the region.

Assessment findings point to an urgent need to reach consensus on equitable water utilization and management among co-riparian countries by consolidating ongoing cooperation. This assessment has the potential for initiating a long-term process of periodic review and update to give a real time authoritative picture of water-related vulnerability, and provide the empirical basis for integrated and sustainable river basin development. This report is aimed at expanding and strengthening the links between the science and policy making processes which will work within riparian states to play a vital role to reducing water vulnerability in the future.
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FRESH WATER under THREAT: Vulnerability Assessment of Fresh Resources to Environmental change - SOUTH ASIA
Water experts that carried out the assessment concluded that; South Asia supports a quarter of the world population with one twentieth of the world’s annual renewable water resources. 500 million people half of world’s poor, eke out a living on the region’s land and water resources. The big challenge is to manage water resources for maximum benefits including safe drinking water, adequate sanitations, growing food, producing electricity while minimizing the risk of ecosystem degradation.

Climate change is set to make South Asia water challenges more complicated the results can be devastating to the people and nations of South Asia especially the poor living on the edge of survival.This report presents a comprehensive assessment of the freshwater resources to environmental change and resiliencies of the region’s waters, whilst serving the purpose of warranting broader promotion and dissemination of assessed information and data to support policy-making in not only this region, but also other regions that face similar water challenges.
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Assessment of the Hydropolitical Vulnerability and Resilience along International Waters was carried out in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, Europe and North America by UNEP and in collaboration with the Universities Partnership for Transboundary Waters led by Oregon State University. This collaboration over a two year period has resulted in publication of five series of valuable reports that establish the fact that transboundary water resources have been a source of collaboration within established cooperation and conflict resolution structures and institutions.

Hydropolitical Vulnerability and Resilience along International Waters - Europe
Presents a comprehensive assessment of hydropolitical vulnerabilities and resilience of Europe’s international water’s. It focuses on the challenges and opportunities facing Europe a continent that enjoys relatively abundant water resources. Although there has been tension and conflicts in many places, the good news is that nations across the world have often chosen cooperation over conflict when it comes to water– “hydro-diplomacy” and “hydrological cooperation” which are now at the forefront of scientific enquiry. This publication shows that lessons learnt from the past can guide current and future policy-makers in water management decisions. The good news is that in the midst of tension and potential conflict in many places our shared water, nations have often chosen cooperation over conflict in water.

There are seventy-one international river basins within Europe and approximately eighty-nine international aquifers. On average, up to 3,200m3 of water is available annually for European inhabitant, of which 660m3 is being extracted. Nations sharing river systems, lakes and aquifers are becoming more vulnerable to tension and conflicts, the good news is that nations across the world historically have often chosen cooperation over conflict when it comes to water-“hydro-diplomacy” and “hydrological cooperation”. The hydro-vulnerability of Europe is governed by major regional institutions like the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) created to resolve transboundary water issues in a cooperative manner that prevents potential conflict.This publication aims at a broader promotion and dissemination of assessed information and data that can support informed policy-making and inspire continuing intergovernmental dialogue and collective action to halt water challenges facing the world.
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Hydropolitical Vulnerability and Resilience along International Waters - Asia
There is an increasing annual demand for water drawn from Asia’s international rivers for domestic, agricultural, industrial, and environmental purposes .International, regional, and local level conflicts regarding access to and use of fresh water pose serious threat both to human security and the security of the countries in this region, especially areas severely affected by water scarcity. Fragmented approach to water management is a major challenge to both local and international level if integrated water resource and ecosystem management system based approaches are not applied. Progress has been made adopting basin wide approaches. This publication promotes a broader dissemination of assessed information and data for informed policy-making.
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Hydropolitical Vulnerability and Resilience along International Waters - North America
This publication presents a comprehensive assessment of the hydropolitical vulnerabilities and resiliencies of Northern America’s international waters, including detailed information on existing and forthcoming cooperation agreements which inform policies at regional, sub-regional and national and which ensures greater cooperation across the diverse social, political, economical, and environmental boundaries in North America. This information and data is an invaluable tool for policy-making in the face of climate change and the challenge of maintaining healthy ecosystems.

Generally, the assessment highlights the fact that the main problems in North America stem form the location of water resources relative to large population centres whereas the majority of the freshwater drains away from the bulk of the population. This report focuses on the challenges and opportunities facing North America and presents a comprehensive assessment of the hydropolitical vulnerabilities and resiliencies of this continent. The hydrovulerability of North America is governed by laws and institutions such as International Joint Commission (IJC) and International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), which have been created to solve Transboundary and water issues in a cooperative manner for over a century resulting to minimal conflict in the region. The international laws of the three countries also reduce the potential impact that individual actions can have on international transboundary waters and have helped sustain cooperation between countries.
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Global Marine Assessment
This report presents part of UNEP's contribution to evaluating the feasibility of establishing a Global Marine Assessment, as a process that will periodically report on the state of the world's marine environment. It presents a snapshot of the marine assessment and related scientific activities in progress at the end of 2002, and recommends various ways in which a Global Marine Assessment could integrate and support these activities.
See http://www.unep.org/dewa/assessments/EcoSystems/
water/Global_Marine_Assessments.pdf

Dugong
The " Dugong - Status Report and Action Plans for selected Countries and Territories " has been finalized. The report is published in the Dewa Report Series February 2002.
See http://www.unep.org/Dewa/reports/dugongreport2.asp

UN Atlas of the oceans

The atlas has received direct input from UNEP-DEWA. It is an information system designed for use by policy makers who need to become familiar with ocean issues. It provides valuable information for use by scientists, students and resource managers who need access to underlying databases and approaches to sustainability.
See http://www.oceansatlas.org/index.jsp

GESAMP
Its purpose was to provide advice to the agencies and, through them their Member Governments on a problem that was just beginning to be recognized as a major threat.
Since then the Joint Group has met regularly and in 1993 its role was extended to cover all scientific aspects on the prevention, reduction and control of the degradation of the marine environment to sustain life support systems, resources and amenities.
See http://gesamp.imo.org/