The return to face-to-face meetings allowed for progress in the implementation of the six Urban Water projects, the exchange of experiences between countries, and the continuation of knowledge and capacity building.

From the commemoration of World Water Day, to the thematic day on Water at COP27, to a sectoral meeting that allowed sharing experiences, learning and success stories between countries: in 2022 the EUROCLIMA Urban Water sector, and the six projects that are part of it, took advantage of the return to face-to-face meetings to advance in the implementation of the initiatives. This year, it was possible to share the results obtained to date and to show how this is possible thanks to the cooperation between the European Union, the implementing agencies, partners, academia and communities.

This is a summary of the main actions carried out by the Urban Water  sector and its projects implemented by the French Development Agency - AFD and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation - AECID, to ensure a universal, safe and quality water supply and the integrated management of water resources to cope with the effects of climate change:

1. EUROCLIMA sectoral meetings

With the aim of sharing experiences, lessons learned, project results and generating new capacities, from 17 to 21 October 2022 the EUROCLIMA Risk Management, Communicators and Urban Water sectoral meetings were held at the AECID Training Centre in Antigua, Guatemala, organised by AECID and AFD..

During this two-day event, the technicians learned and socialised about aspects that are part of the implementation of EUROCLIMA actions, such as knowledge management, scalability and financing of their projects and implementation of the gender approach in the initiatives. This meeting allowed them to share what progress has been made, in order to be able to plan for the future.

See a summary of the meetings here: https://www.euroclima.org/en/recent-events/articles-and-interviews/1801-the-meeting-of-the-urban-water-and-disaster-risk-management-sectors-of-euroclima-begins 

2. Climate-proofing water: Urban Water Day at COP27

With three panels and a high-level debate on the central theme: How to adapt and ensure the continuity of water services with flexibility in the face of a changing world, the Urban Water thematic day took place on 14 November in the EUROCLIMA pavilion at COP27 in Sharm-El-Seikh, Egypt..

The events were attended by partners such as UN Habitat, the United Nations Environment Programme, the Ministry of Environment of Panama, the Ministry of Environment of Ecuador, the Governorate of Cundinamarca in Colombia, the National Administration of Aqueducts and Sewers of El Salvador, the Climate Action Alliance Venezuela and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration, who shared different perspectives and contributions towards greater security in water management through integrated water management.

Learn more about the main conclusions of the thematic day here: https://www.euroclima.org/en/recent-events-water/news-water1/1849-water-climate-risk-proofing-articulation-and-planning-for-more-resilient-territories 

3. The Water for Abancay route, Peru

To learn about the EUROCLIMA Urban Water projects in depth, all you need to do is visit the Programme's website. As part of the EUROCLIMA sectoral meetings, The Water Route was launched, an immersive experience that provides an in-depth insight into the areas where Urban Water projects are being implemented. This virtual reality platform, developed by the photographer Nicolas Villaume with the support of Hydroconseil, provides valuable information on how work is being done in the territories to protect water, but above all, it gathers testimonies, images, videos and sounds that allow to learning about and recognizing the fundamental importance of generating greater resilience in urban areas.

This is the first delivery of the Water Route, in Abancay, Peru, where 'Water for Abancay' is implemented. This same platform will be developed with the six Urban Water projects: https://www.euroclima.org/component/sppagebuilder/714-agua-iframes 

4. Making the Invisible Visible: Knowledge Management for strengthening capacities

Through four virtual sessions with the participation of the technicians of the six Urban Water projects, the Knowledge Management workshops were held, created with the aim of systematising the knowledge and best practices accumulated on the sector's projects with thematic working groups, and also to promote the exchange between projects and professional contacts at the regional level. 

The sessions that were held had the following main lines of work: 

• Making the invisible visible -- introductory session 
• Basin governance in the context of climate change 

• Managing risks to water services in the context of climate change 
• Co-responsibility and solidarity among stakeholders in the same basin in the fight against climate change 

In closing, the systematisation of these results was carried out during the sectoral meeting on Urban Water, which was held in person in La Antigua, Guatemala. 

5. What would a world without water be like?

For Water Week 2022, which took place from 23 August to 1 September and had as its central theme 'The value of water', a campaign was carried out to raise awareness of the importance of water in our lives. With the launch of the video:  The Water Clock, it sought to position the message that time is running out to take care of this valuable resource, and with a live show called The Guardians of Water, the stories of the people who work in EUROCLIMA projects for a more resilient access to water were shared. 

In addition, children from Latin America were invited to share through drawings how they imagined a world without water. The results were published on EUROCLIMA's social networks. 

Find out about all the actions we are carrying out as part of this campaign here: https://www.euroclima.org/en/recent-events-water/news-water1/1762-in-world-water-week-euroclima-launches-a-campaign-to-raise-awareness-about-water-conservation 

6. Meet the 'Guardianas of Water': women working to protect and ensure the water supply in Latin America.

For World Water Day on 22 March 2022, the Urban Water sector joined the 'Gender in EUROCLIMA' campaign to raise awareness of the importance of implementing a gender perspective and working for the participation and inclusion of women in climate action, telling the stories of Amalia in Guatemala, Naysha in Peru, Xinia in Costa Rica and Laura in El Salvador. 

They are part of EUROCLIMA's Urban Water projects and play a key role in providing technical support for their implementation, hand in hand with the communities. Read their stories here: https://www.euroclima.org/en/recent-events-water/articles-and-interviews-water/1613-the-guardians-of-water 

About EUROCLIMA+ Urban Water

A través de este sector del programa EUROCLIMA+, implementado por la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID) y la Agencia Francesa de Desarrollo (AFD), se ejecutan siete proyectos. Para más información sobre cada uno visite: https://www.euroclima.org/en/water

About EUROCLIMA+

EUROCLIMA+ is a programme funded by the European Union and co-financed by the German federal government through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as well as by the governments of France and Spain through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation. 

The Programme's mission is to reduce the impact of climate change and its effects in 18 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, promoting mitigation, adaptation, resilience and climate investment. It is implemented according to the "Spirit of Team Europe" under the synergistic work of seven agencies: the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the AFD Group: the French Development Agency (AFD)/ Expertise France (EF), the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the International and Ibero-America Foundation for Administration and Public Policy (FIIAPP), the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) GmbH, and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).