Paris, 17 mar (EFE).-the World Water Forum closed today in Marseille its sixth edition in order to convince world leaders that addressed the issue of water as “a global problem” that has to be solved “for the benefit of humanity”, in the words of its President, Loic Fauchon.
“Live a breakthrough on the issue of water” because “it has been imposed as a first priority of global development” said Fauchon in the Palace of congresses and conventions of Marseille, in the South-East of France.
This meeting of a triennial basis, that followed the celebrated in Istanbul in 2009 and brought together more than 10,000 people to discuss on water between 12 and 17 March, also certified that “the role of parliaments is absolutely crucial” to seek solutions in the field of sustainable management of water resources.
In a final communiqué, the President of the Forum held that the World Conference on sustainable development Rio + 20, which will take place from 20 to 22 June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), decided to include the subject of the water for the first time among its nine key points.
In addition, the General Assembly of the United Nations has set for the month of July, a day “totally devoted to water”, Fauchon said in a statement.
A non-binding ministerial declaration adopted by the participants of delegations from 130 countries present at the Forum pointed out that it is the time to find “solutions” to a crucial problem to achieve the 2015 UN Millennium goals.
Points addressed included access to drinking water and sanitation, as it has an impact on the well-being and health of all the inhabitants of the planet and serves as a basis for progress in sustainable development and job creation.
In parallel, an alternative forum in which participated environmentalists and “altermundistas” attempted to disassemble the official message to emphasize that water is not a commodity, but a common good of all citizens.
Las ONG represented in that other forum pointed out that the right to this type of encounters framework would be the umbrella of the United Nations and not an appointment managed “by multinational”.
French Prime Minister François Fillon, delivers a speech at the World Water Forum in Marseille, France, on March 12. EFE/file
