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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, October 15, 2019 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – The Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris, is urging regional ministers responsible for water, as well as water experts and international partners to use the 28th Annual Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association (CWWA) Conference and Exhibition, currently taking place in St. Kitts and Nevis, to explore and address the challenges Caribbean nations face in developing sustainable water strategies.

Prime Minister Harris was at the time delivering the keynote address at a CWWA forum, hosted in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on achieving water security in the Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

The forum took place earlier today, Tuesday, October, 15, 2019 at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort. It was one of the activities held as part of the larger CWWA conference, which runs from October 14-18.

In his remarks, the Honourable Prime Minister indicated that an urgent need has arisen to address water challenges “by identifying priorities for action at the highest political level, building on existing partnerships.”

In this regard, Prime Minister Harris said regional governments “welcome the heightened importance provided by UNESCO and CWWA in deploying their unique multi-disciplinary expertise – in science, culture, climate change, education, biodiversity resource preservation, knowledge management and information for decision-making – in addressing the multiplicity of challenges facing SIDS.”

The St. Kitts and Nevis prime minister made specific mention of UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme (IHP), which he says provides expert guidance through initiatives and tools that promote sound governance and management of water resources in SIDS.

“We urge UNESCO-IHP, as the only intergovernmental programme of the United Nations (UN) system devoted to water research, water resources management, education and capacity-building, to accompany us in the Caribbean in integrating watershed and aquifer management, which incorporates the social dimension of water resources, and promotes and develops international research in hydrological and freshwater sciences,” Prime Minister Harris stated.

Dr. Harris said Tuesday’s forum underlined his Team Unity Government’s commitment to work with all institutions for the good of all the Caribbean states.

The 28^th annual CWWA Conference is being staged under the theme “Securing the Caribbean’s Future: Financing the Water and Waste Sectors.”