Background
World Water Day (WWD) is celebrated on 22nd March every year, as the day to mark the importance of freshwater and advocating for sustainable management of freshwater resources. United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in 1992 recommended celebrating the day as an international day for freshwater and 22 March 1993 was designated as the first World Water Day. Each year WWD emphasizes a specific aspect of freshwater, and this year UN Water declared the theme for WWD 2010 as “Clean Water for a Healthy World” with special focus on quality of water. The overall goal of the World Water Day 2010 campaign is to raise the profile of water quality at the political level so that water quality considerations are made alongside those of water quantity.
As in 2009, Nepal National Water Week Organizing Committee (NNWWOC) 2010 – consisting 22 members from different organizations, including government, non-government, professional societies, academicians, and youth groups was formed. The committee was chaired by the Secretary of Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS). The major tasks to be performed by the committee were to organize a week long program (17-23 March) entitled “Nepal National Water Week 2010” with the theme – ‘Clean Water for a Healthy World’, and with the slogan – ‘Communicating Water Quality; Challenges and Opportunities’. The water week was designed to commemorate the World Water Day (March 22) and World Meteorological Day (March 23) in order to disseminate the message of the importance of water quality and water scarcity to life and the growing risk with them. The week long celebration and functions also marked the joint commitment of the government entities, the non-government and professional societies in carrying out joint programs to the people.
A week long programs to celebrate Nepal National Water Week were scheduled from 17 to 23 March. Some programs such as online campaign, online photography competition were started from the beginning of March. Similarly, a street drama was conducted on the theme of clean water for a healthy world was organized on 13 March at Basantapur Dawali. Similarly, Virtual Academy course on hydrological modeling training was conducted for graduate students from 11 to 19 March. The main organizing committee organized a press meet on 16 March at WECS meeting hall to disseminate the information of the week long programs.
The formal opening ceremony of the Nepal National Water Week-2010 was held on 17 March. School level on-the-spot art and poem competition was organized on 18 March at Central Zoo premises, Jawalakhel. To communicate water quality as well as quantity issues to the policy makers, an interaction program with Constitutional Assembly members was organized on 19 March. On 20 March, one day training on groundwater and field visit to Sundarijal area for the field observation of groundwater recharge area was organized for master level students.
A national level Symposium on ‘Communicating Water Quality: Challenges and Opportunities’ was scheduled for 21 March, whereas a proposal writing training to students at Institute of Agriculture and Animal Sciences (IAAS), Rampur on the same day. Due to the national mourning of the sad demise of Former Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala during scheduled date, the symposium was held on 7 April 2010 whereas the water parade scheduled for 22 March was cancelled by an emergency meeting of NNWWOC on 20 March. The training program to be organized at IAAS, Rampur has been postponed for later. Closing and award distribution ceremony, scheduled for 22 March, was also conducted on 7 April 2010. Baseline study of Rampur Ghole has been also postponed.
Different informative materials were also published during NNWW-2010. Water quality guide book- ‘JAL, JAL PRADHUSAN, JAL SAMRAKHSAN: SAMANYA JANKARI’ was one of the important publications of NNWWOC-2010. The various programs of NNWWOC-2010 were actively participated and there was positive feedback from the participants.
