On September 9, the 84th Board of Governors Meeting of World Water Council (WWC) was convened in Beijing. Mr. Li Guoying, Minister of Water Resources, and Mr. Loic Fauchon, President of WWC, attended the opening ceremony and delivered opening remarks.
Li Guoying pointed out that due to special geographic and climatic conditions, China has been confronted with exceptionally difficult tasks of water governance since ancient times. Entering the new era, the Ministry of Water Resources of China has thoroughly practiced President Xi Jinping’s water governance philosophy of “prioritizing water conservation, balancing spatial distribution, taking systematic approaches, and giving full play to the roles of both government and market”. A series of effective endeavors have been carried out in the spheres of water disaster prevention, water saving, water ecology rehabilitation and water environment protection, so as to improve the capacities to prevent floods and droughts, conserve and efficiently utilize water resources, optimize water allocation, and protect and manage river and lake ecosystems. Hence, China has achieved historic achievements and undergone remarkable changes in water sector.
Li Guoying noted that WWC is one of the most important water related non-governmental organizations in the world, and has made important contributions to promoting water exchange and cooperation among countries around the world, as well as realizing water-related goals of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Ministry of Water Resources of China has established a long-term friendly cooperative relationship with WWC. China’s water sector has received strong supports from WWC, and has also contributed its wisdom and strength to global water governance.
Li Guoying emphasized that tackling water security challenges requires joint endeavors of all countries in the world. China stands ready to work with WWC to implement water-related goals of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, so as to facilitate sustainable economic and social development through sustainable utilization of water resources.
Loic Fauchon stated that China is one of the most important partners of WWC. With the support and mobilization of the Ministry of Water Resources of China, Chinese member organizations have conducted rich exchange and cooperation with WWC, and Chinese experts have deeply participated in diverse activities and decision-making body of WWC, thus making contributions to the development of WWC. In the forthcoming future, WWC is willing to further upgrade cooperation with the Ministry of Water Resources of China, and jointly make greater contributions to accelerating the implementation of water-related goals of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
WWC has over 270 institutional members from over 50 countries and international organizations. The Board of Governors is the decision-making body of WWC, with 36 seats from 5 categories, including Intergovernmental organizations, Governments and governmental organizations, Commercial organizations, Civil society organizations and Professional and academic organizations. At present, there are 3 Chinese water organizations serving as governors. The Ministry of Water Resources of China joined WWC in 2009, and currently China boasts of 36 member organizations, making it the largest member state of WWC.