The Atriz Valley Water Region, where one of EUROCLIMA+'s Urban Water projects will be implemented, will be prioritised to encourage greater investment and more initiatives for environmental sustainability.
September 24, 2020. Bogotá, Colombia. The Atriz Valley Water Region (Spanish acronym RHVA) is an area where different ecosystems, paramos, and protected areas converge. This region, located in the department of Nariño in south-western Colombia, is made up of 12 municipalities which share basins that play a fundamental role in water supply and regulation, but also in the environment.
In the last reform of the General System of Royalties in Colombia, RHVA was included as a strategic ecosystem, which means that it will be one of the priority areas for financing projects associated with the consolidation of water security and environmental sustainability in the region.
The European Union has been committed to the RHVA since 2019, when, through the implementing agency in charge, the French Development Agency (AFD), it selected the project: "Strengthening the territorial approach and water governance in Andean mountain cities, as a strategy for urban resilience to climate change: The case of the Atriz Valley Water Region - RHVA" as one of the seven initiatives of the Urban Water sector of EUROCLIMA+. The project is about to be signed to start its implementation, with EMPOPASTO as a strategic ally, together with the entities that accompany this management: Tangua Mayor's Office, Pasto Mayor's Office, Nariño Governor's Office, Fundación Social, Patrimonio Natural, Corponariño, and Mariana University.
For Dr. Francisco Canal, technical advisor on integrated Water, Climate and Territory management for this project, this is a great step forward for the protection of the water resources in the area: "This is great news for the inhabitants of the department of Nariño, because its central region is where different environmental areas converge, providing various ecosystem services for the rural population. It is very important to consolidate economic, social and environmental development, and to ensure our sustainability going forward, in a territory that must adapt itself to climate change," he says.
The aim is to design and implement strategies to strengthen the water governance system, which will allow the development of an integral culture of water, climate and territory, hand in hand with the communities, in order to conserve the ecosystems and the basins that supply the aqueducts and improve the conditions of water access and availability. According to Mr. Canal, greater investment in this region also seeks to close existing gaps in terms of coverage, continuity, and potable water quality, in both rural and urban areas, as this encourages the adaptation of infrastructure to both climate variability and water scarcity.
The EUROCLIMA+ project "Strengthening the territorial approach and water governance" aims to establish a territorial system of water governance in intermediate and small high mountain cities in the RHVA, which share water sources and need to develop collaborative tools for their water security as a climate change adaptation strategy to benefit more than 480,000 inhabitants of the municipalities of Pasto and Tangua, in Nariño.
EUROCLIMA+ Water management sector with an urban resilience perspective
Through this sector of the EUROCLIMA+ programme implemented by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the French Development Agency (AFD), a total of seven projects will be implemented. For more information on each project visit: https://www.euroclima.org/agua
About EUROCLIMA+
EUROCLIMA+ is a programme financed by the European Union to promote environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient development in 18 Latin American countries, particular for the benefit of the most vulnerable populations. The Programme is implemented under the synergistic work of seven agencies: the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the French Development Agency (AFD), the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Expertise France (EF), International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policy (FIIAPP), the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), and UN Environment.
Contacts
ación sobre EUROCLIMA+, contactar a Alexandra Cortés: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Para información sobre el sector de Agua Urbana de EUROCLIMA+, contactar al correo electrónico This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.euroclimaplus.org