On the occasion of the Wilson Center's 50th anniversary, its Environmental Change and Security Program and nine co-sponsoring programs convened experts on November 28 from government, the NGO sector, and academia for a comprehensive look at the first year of the U.S. Government Global Water Strategy and new research and practice on water, peace, and conflict.
The United States Is Leading the Humanitarian and Health Assistance Response to COVID-19
FACT SHEET
USAID is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic with decisive action at home and abroad. Our priorities in the response are to protect the safety and health security of our global workforce, ensure that we can continue our life-saving mission across the world, and support partner countries in their response to COVID-19.
In March and April of 2019, two massive cyclones (Idai and Kenneth) hit Mozambique, impacting the central and northern parts of the country. On the evening of March 14, Category IV Cyclone Idai made landfall in Beira, a city of 500,000, then moved into the provinces of Sofala, Inhambane, Zambézia, and Manica, and later affected Malawi and Zimbabwe leaving behind a trail of devastation. In Mozambique, the cyclone caused more than 600 deaths and left 1.85 million people in need of assistance.
When the 2010 earthquake hit Haiti, the country had just undertaken a massive reform of its water sector. The recovery from the initial disaster and subsequent cholera outbreak shifted the focus from structural reform to disaster response. An outpouring of international assistance helped Haiti dig itself out of these disasters and rebuild its infrastructure.
Climate risk management (CRM) improves the effectiveness and sustainability of USAID’s water efforts. USAID implements CRM by systematically assessing, addressing, and adaptively managing climate risk in new strategies, projects, and activities.
World Water Day is observed annually on March 22 to raise awareness about the vital importance of water to safeguarding human security and maintaining the health of the planet's ecosystems. This year's theme, "Water and Climate Change," highlights the urgent importance of strengthening water security and establishing access to a sustainable water supply in the face of changing climate conditions worldwide. The observance will also raise public awareness about the many ways shifting atmospheric and oceanic conditions are reshaping t
Specific objectives of this WASH Debate are to learn about the following:
- Understand how WASH systems can be developed and strengthened in fragile contexts
- Explore the extent to which external programmes should focus on strengthening the state rather than civil society organisations in WASH
- Exchange lessons learned on the provision of WASH services between NGO staff, government policy officers and experts working in fragile contexts
In 2015, the SERVIR program adopted a Service Planning approach to ensure that its services help developing countries effectively solve challenges related to agriculture, water management, land use and disaster management.
Building on experiences with the new approach, this Service Planning Toolkit is a resource for SERVIR Hubs as they, with their partners, strive to make an impact in designing, delivering and implementing services.
States with high exposure to climate hazards face multi-faceted challenges, including physical and livelihood risks for the population that may force states to redirect scarce resources to adaptation or humanitarian response efforts and strain the capacity of states that, in many cases, are still solidifying democratic institutions and mechanisms for meeting public needs.
