International Conference on the Right to Water and Sanitation in Theory and Practice
From WaterWiki.net
Date | 26-27 November 2008 |
Location | Oslo, Norway (Norlandia Hotel)
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Organizer(s) | Univesrity of Oslo; University of Oxford; UNDP Oslo Governance Centre
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Synopsis / objectives | The Universities of Oslo and Oxford, together with UNDP have organized this international conference (26 and 27 November 2008 in Oslo, Norlandia Hotel) to examine a wide range of theoretical and practical dimensions of the human right to water and sanitation. The principal objective was to promote research, debate, legal/policy development and greater understanding of the human right to water and sanitation.
The focus was on the global and local level from a range of disciplinary perspectives, including law, environmental studies, development, economics, health and other social sciences. The four key outputs of the conference were: (i) an edited volume of papers; (ii) a synthesis report of key themes, ideas and further research recommendations that would be made publicly available; (iii) one page abstracts of the papers (i.a. for posting on WaterWiki, as to be updated and further developed after the conference. UNDP organized a third-day follow-up workshop to discuss the practical translation of conference outcomes into results at the ground. |
Background
The social, environmental, economic and ideological dimensions of the world water crisis are manifest in the massive degradation of freshwater resources, the large-scale inequities in access to water resources and supply, and concerns over the privatisation of water services. As the deep-seated structural dimensions of these problems have become more apparent, Human Rights-Based Approach are being increasingly promoted as a means of improving access to water and water governance. The right to water was explicitly recognised in a 1977 UN declaration, but the key legal catalyst was likely the adoption of General Comment 15 (2002) on the Right to Water by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. In 2006, the UN Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights adopted Guidelines on the Realization of the Right to Drinking Water and Sanitation. The same year, UNDP’s Human Development Report’s first recommendation was that all governments ‘make water a human right– and mean it’. Some governments and national courts have begun to recognise and apply the Right to Water. Recently, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that it is time to consider access to water and sanitation as a human right, while the UN Human Rights Council has recently appointed an Independent Expert on Human Rights and Access to Water and Sanitation.
It is therefore an opportune time to reflect on the right to water in theory and in practice, particularly as six years will shortly elapse since the adoption of the General Comment and the UN Millennium Project Taskforce has called on countries to use the standard in reaching MDG 7 Target 10. It is firstly important to consider whether the right has now been firmly entrenched in, at least, international human rights treaty law and the implications for legal and philosophical theories on the criteria for the establishment of new rights. Secondly, the potential conflicts between water uses need to be more fully examined in a human rights context, in particular the relationship between basic uses and other uses including livelihoods, environment and general economic development. Thirdly, and most critically, there is a need to more deeply consider the role human rights can play in enriching and transforming thinking on service delivery, as well as augmenting traditional human rights advocacy. Fourthly, it is necessary to consider the relationship of the right to water with sanitation, particularly as 2008 is the International Year of Sanitation.
Programme & Papers
For the final report of the conference see 'attachments' below
OPENING SESSION (26 Nov 08; 9:00-10:00)
Facilitator: Asbjørn Eide, Emeritus Professor, Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, University of Oslo
- Erik Solheim, Minister of the Environment and International Development, Norway
- Catarina de Albuquerque, UN Independent Expert on Human Rights Obligations related to Access to Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation
- Joakim Harlin, UNDP / Office of UN-Water
SESSION 2 - LAW, POLITICS & POWER: CHALLENGES IN CONTEXT (26 Nov 08; 10.30-12.15)
Facilitator: Bjørn Føerde, UNDP Oslo Governance Centre
Malcolm Langford, Norwegian Centre on Human Rights, University of Oslo
Professor Bill Derman, Norwegian University of Life Sciences and University of Michigan and Dr. Emmanuel Manzungu, Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering, University of Zimbabwe
Professor Anne Hellum, Institute for Women’s Law, University of Oslo
SESSION 3 - CONFLICT OR CONGRUENCE: WATER ALLOCATION (26 Nov 08; 13:30-15:30)
Facilitator: Professor Anne Hellum, Institute for Women's Law, University of Oslo
Dr. Barbara van Koppen, International Water Management Institute, Johannesburg
Dr. Philippe Cullet, SOAS, University of London
Professor Attila Tanzi, University of Bologna, Italy
- Additional paper available for discussion period: International watercourses: implications of the right to water, Professor Stephen McCaffrey, Faculty of Law, McGeorge University ???
SESSION 4 - THE BROADER DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT (26 Nov 08; 16:00-17:30)
Facilitator: Dr Nandita Singh, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
Dr. Anna Russell, Oxford Centre for Water Research, University of Oxford
Dr. Jackie Dugard, University of Witwatersrand and Malcolm Langford, University of Oslo
- Comment: "Roma and right to water and sanitation in Bulgaria", Dabiela Mihailova, Equal Opportunities Foundation
- Additional paper available for discussion period: "Development cooperation and international human rights obligations", Ashfaq Khalfan, Coordinator, Right to Water Programme, COHRE ??
SESSION 5 - WATER SERVICES AND THE MARKET (27 Nov 08; 9:00-10:30)
Facilitator: Dr Philippe Cullet, SOAS, University of London
Carolina Fairstein, Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS), Argentina
Nicola Colbran, Norwegian Centre on Human Rights
- Comment: "Privatisation from below",
Professor Bill Derman, Norwegian University of Life Sciences and University of Michigan
SESSION 6A: SOCIAL CHOICE AND SOCIAL NORMS (27 Nov 08; 11:00-12:30)
Facilitator: Karin Lexén, Swedish Water House
Dr. Rob Hope, Oxford Centre for Water Research, University of Oxford
Dr. Nandita Singh, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
Virginia Roaf, COHRE, Malcolm Langford, University of Oslo
SESSION 7A: FISCAL RESOURCES AND AFFORDABILITY (27 Nov 08; 13:30-15:30)
Facilitator: Dr. Rob Hope, Oxford Centre for Water Research, University of Oxford
Dr. Ed Anderson, University of East Anglia and Malcolm Langford, University of Oslo
Virginia Roaf, COHRE and Gonzalo Pizarro, UNDP
Dr. Simone Klawitter, GTZ Zambia
Henri Smets, French Water Academy
SESSION 7B: EQUALITY, LAW AND DEVELOPMENT (27 Nov 08; 13:30-15:30)
Facilitator: Andrew Preston, Association for Water Studies (FIVAS) Norway
Lara El-Jazairi, COHRE Right to Water Programme
Domingo Lovera, University of Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile
Associate Professor Maria Lundberg, China Programme, Norwegian Centre on Human Rights and Yong Zhou, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Thorsten Kiefer, COHRE Centre of Housing Rights and Evicisons & Phd Candidate, University of Amsterdam
SESSION 8: CONCLUSIONS (27 Nov 08; 16:00-17:00)
Facilitator: University of Oslo, University of Oxford
- Five panellists from amongst the participants would be asked to speak for five minutes on their conclusions before a wider debate is commenced. The panellists would be two academics, one UN agency, one government, and one civil society representative.
References
See also
External Resources
Oxford University School of Geography and the Environment Conference Page
