Islamic world to form a common water vision

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

Representatives of 57 Muslim countries gathered in Istanbul yesterday in order to create a common “water vision.”

Ministers and deputy ministers of participating countries in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) gathered in Istanbul to improve cooperation in the access and use of water. “Millions of people are dying because of lack of access to drinkable water, and water is squandered a lot. Our aim is to form a new common vision on water among the OIC countries,” Director General of Turkey’s Multilateral Economic Affairs, Energy and Environment Mithat Rende told Hürriyet Daily News.

Rende said there were also international disputes on trans-boundary rivers in the region.

“In order to solve the disputes on the trans-boundary rivers, first of all you have to have political will, mutual trust and confidence building between two sides. It takes two to tango,” Rende said. Turkey has trans-boundary rivers with Syria, Iraq, Bulgaria, Greece and Georgia. There is a serious problem of providing safe drinking water, especially to the African countries participating in the meeting, and Turkey will share its experience in “state hydraulic works” with the African countries, said Turkish Environment and Forestry Minister Veysel Eroğlu.

Turkey was ready to share its experience, technology and expertise in water treatment and preventing flood irrigation in context with the targets of the common Water Vision that was developed in the meeting, he said.