Launch of water governance program in Honduras

On 13 July, 2017 the Water Governance in the Gulf of Fonseca Region program of Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) was launched in Choluteca, Honduras. More than 50 public and private sector representatives participated in this event, among them the Presidential Commissioner of the Regional Development Council and members of the MiAmbiente Secretary. The implementation of this program is facilitated by a consortium set up by GFA Consulting Group, iDE and ECOPSIS with MiAmbiente, the Secretary for Energy, Natural Resources, Environment and Mines as national counterpart.

The general objective of the program is to contribute to the development of a system of integral and inclusive territorial water governance in the mentioned region. This is to safeguard the availability of water in a sustainable and equitable manner. The program promotes the coordinated management of the Nacaome, Choluteca and Sampile watersheds by various public and private water users, who intend to jointly address challenges and potentials in the water sector.

The program seeks to promote sustainability, integral management and water equity. It will benefit 504,563 people and companies in the three watersheds which are affected by climate change, drought, floods, and water shortages.

In an effort to consolidate watershed organizations, the program will act primarily as a facilitator that provides accompaniment, dialogue processes and training to water-related territorial partners. Once the watershed organizations are formed, the program will provide technical assistance and capacity building for the collection of hydrological information, and the elaboration and execution of water management plans.