NIGERIA: EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE NIGER

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 001156 SIPDIS INFO USAID/W FOR AFR/WA, ANGELA LOZANO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AID AMGT ABLD ASEC NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE NIGER BASIN AUTHORITY (NBA) COUNCIL OF MINISTERS: ABUJA, NIGERIA - MAY 9 - 13, 2005 -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. The Extraordinary Session of the NBA Council of Ministers took place from May 9 to 13, 2005, in Abuja, Nigeria. The Ministers met to review progress in developing a framework for sustainable integrated water resources management and cross-border cooperation, the "Shared Vision". Session participants agreed to move forward with a strategic planning process that over the next two years will yield an Action Plan for the sustainable development of the Niger Basin for the next 20 years. End summary. -------------- Background -------------- ¶2. The NBA is composed of nine member countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Cte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger and Nigeria. Originally established in 1964 as the Niger River Commission (NRC) and tasked with coordinating and providing information on various development projects of the Niger basin, the organization was reconstituted in 1980 as the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) and its mandate was broadened to include: Co-ordination of national development policies and formulation of the general development policy and plans of the basin. Implementation of projects for sustainable use of Niger Basin resources. ¶3. The NBA is managed by an Executive Secretariat. The Summit of Heads of State and Government, the apex decision making body, meets every two years while a Council of Ministers meets annually to monitor the activities of the Executive. -------------- CHALLENGES: -------------- ¶4. The Authority faces significant challenges. No member nation has ceded any sovereignty over resources es to the Authority, thus hindering its capacity to execute plans and projects. Most of the NBA member countries are among the world's poorest nations, with economies based on agriculture and livestock that are now adversely affected by inadequate supplies of water, increasing urban migration and hydroclimatic changes. ¶5. In addition to poverty and lack of resources for development, the basin also faces significant environmental challenges, including desertification, deforestation and waterborne pollution. ¶6. Nonetheless, an organization that includes (almost) all basin players is an important prerequisite for cooperative management of common water resources. -------------- The Shared Vision -------------- ¶7. The Shared Vision process, launched in 2004, encompasses the NBA's strategic planning efforts, and addresses the following core objectives: - establishing a common legal and institutional framework; - sustainable and equitable water resource management in the Niger Basin; - fostering cooperation and joint action among member countries; - poverty alleviation and regional economic integration. -------------- -------------- EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE NBA COUNCIL OF MINISTERS ABUJA NIGERIA - MAY 9 -13, 2005: -------------- -------------- ¶8. The Extraordinary Session of the NBA Council of Ministers on the Shared Vision took place from May 12 to 13, 2005, in Abuja, Nigeria, under the chairmanship of H.E. Mr. Abdou Labo, Minister of Hydraulics, Environment and Desertification Control of the Republic of Niger. The principal objective of the meeting was to assess progress to date in the Shared Vision process and to agree on next steps. All nine member countries, invited representatives of nine donor agencies including USAID and several sub-regional NGOs and international organizations participated in the meeting (see attached list). The participants endorsed the satisfactory completion of Phase One of the shared vision process and approved the commencement of Phase ¶2. Nine million euro is budgeted for this phase, of which approximately 85% has been committed by the World Bank, CIDA, the French Agency for Development, the European Union and the Niger Basin countries. A request for support was extended to other donors to meet the shortfall in the budget. ¶9. With the successful completion of Phase One and the approval for the commencement of Phase Two of the shared vision process by the Council of Ministers, the member countries and participants at the meeting felt confident that NBA will be able to achieve its goal of sustainable development. The donors contributing to the shared vision process expressed their satisfaction with the progress made by NBA and pledged continued support. Participants: Member Countries: ¶H. E. Mr. Kamarou Fassassi, Minister of Mines, Energy and Hydraulics - Republic of Benin Mr. Francis Bougaire, Director General of Water r resources inventory, Representing the Supervising Minister of Burkina Faso ¶H. E. Mr. Seini Katchalla, Minister Delegate to the Ministry of Planning, Development Programming and Regional Development - Republic of Cameroon ¶H. E. Mr. Emile M'Lingui Keffa, Ambassador of Cote D'Ivoire in Nigeria, Representing the Minister of Water Resources and Forests ¶H. E. Hadjia Fatoumata Binta Diallo, Minister of Hydraulics and Energy - Republic of Guinea ¶H. E. Mr. Hamed Diane Semega Minister of Mines, Energy and Water Resources - Republic of Mali ¶H. E. Mr. Abdou Labo, Minister of Hydraulics, Environment and Desertification Control - Republic of Niger Engineer B. I. Awotorebo, the Honorable Minister of State for Water Resources -Federal Republic of Nigeria ¶H. E. Dr Amodum Diar Mogodi, Minister of Environment and Water Resources - Republic of Chad Donor Institutions: tions: United Nation General Secretariat (UN-DESA); Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA); The World Bank (WB); French Development Agency (FDA); French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (FMFA); United Nations Development Programs (UNDP); United States Agency for International Development (USAID); European Union (EU); Islamic Development Bank (DB); Sub-regional NGOs and International organizations: Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC); Wetlands International; World Wide Fund (WWF); Agrhymet Regional Center (ARC); Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FEF); Global Water Partnership for West Africa (GWP/WAWP); African Reference Group for water (AFGW); United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO); Niger-Wet. CAMPBELL