Sava River Commission

Transboundary Water Cooperation in the Sava River Basin Dr. Dejan Komatina, Secretary, ISRBC

Sava river basinUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 2

Sava river basin – Area: 97 713 km2 (the second largest Danube sub-basin; share: 12%) – Average flow at the mouth: 1722 m3/s (the largest Danube tributary; contribution: 25%) – River length: 940 km (594 km of which is the waterway) – Population: approx. 9 million Country Share of the Share of the basin (%) territory (%) Albania 0.2 0.6 Bosnia & Herzegovina 39.2 75.8 Croatia 26.0 45.2 Montenegro 7.1 49.6 Serbia 15.5 17.4 Slovenia 12.0 52.8UN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 3

Establishment of cooperation• Challenge 1 – Need for economic development of the countries in the basin – Need (and obligation) for environmental protection of the basin – A well-balanced approach is necessary to use the potential and preserve the existing values simultaneouslyUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 4

Establishment of cooperation• Challenge 2 – Consequences of the geopolitical changes in the region in the 1990-ies • Sava turned from the largest national river into an international river • Water management got restricted to national level of the newly established countries – New, international framework is required for water management on the basin levelUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 5

Establishment of cooperation• The Sava River Initiative – Launch of the Initiative: June 2001 – Signing the Letter of Intent on Coop. in the SRB: Nov. 29, 2001 – Signing the FASRB: Kranjska Gora, Dec. 3, 2002 – Est. of the Interim Sava Commission: Brussels, March 12, 2003 – Entering of the FASRB into force: December 29, 2004 – Est. of the ISRBC: Zagreb, June 27-29, 2005 – Est. of the ISRBC Secretariat: Zagreb, January 9, 2006• FASRB: the first development-oriented multilateral agreement concluded in the region after the agreements on peace and successionUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 6

FASRB• Key objective: Transboundary cooperation for sustainable development of the region• Particular objectives – to establish: – International regime of navigation – Sustainable water management – Sustainable management of hazards (floods, droughts, accidents, etc.)• Provides the ISRBC with the broadest scope of work among European int’l basin organizations (i.e. int’l river/lake commissions)UN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 7

Activities of the ISRBC• Coordination of: – Development of joint / integrated plans for the basin – Establishment of integrated systems for the basin – Development of economic activities (navigation, tourism) – Harmonization of regulation (national  EU) – Creation of additional protocols to the FASRB• Cooperation / stakeholder involvement / public participationUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 8

Key features of the approach• Cohesive, providing conditions for: – Cooperation of the countries after the conflict – Implementation of joint, basin-wide projects – Harmonization of national regulation, methodologies, procedures … – Enhancement of cross-sectoral cooperation on national level• Integrated – Geographical scope (whole basin) – Scope of work (sustainability + development) – Across the sectors of society (gov., non-gov., academic, business)• Transparent (public participation, stakeholder involvement)UN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 9

Key features of the approach• Aligned with UNECE conventions and EU regulation / strategies – Water Convention, Espoo Convention – EU directives (WFD, Flood Directive, INSPIRE, etc.) – EU Danube Strategy, EU 2020 Strategy• Subregional (“finer resolution” and complementarity of results with those obtained on a regional, Danube scale)• Pragmatic and practical – providing the Parties with concrete “products” (strategic plans, integrated systems, development programs, harmonized regulation)UN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 10

Challenges to implementation• Differences between the countries – Status with respect to EU & eligibility for approaching funds – Level of economic development (financial resources) – Organizational structure in decision-making process – Environmental awareness of the public• Conflict of interests of different users of water (within a country / between countries / climate change)• Different legal capacity of the ISRBC in the fields of navigation and water management (different perception of the ISRBC decisions and recommendations by the Parties / national institutions)UN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 11

Challenges to implementation• Broad scope of the FASRB – Protocols are necessary to regulate specific issues addressed by the FASRB – Many focal points and good cross-sectoral coordination and communication within a Party are needed – Lack of human and financial resources in the Parties – Considerable efforts are needed to raise awareness in the Parties of benefits and the importance of the existing cooperationUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 12

Conclusions• FASRB appears to be a good framework for Integrated TWRM• High demand for resources and permanent joint efforts of the Parties• Considerable benefit for the Parties• FASRB provides a good basis for the progress towards the achievement of the key objective – sustainable development of the Sava river basinUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 13

Contact informationInternational Sava River Basin CommissionKneza Branimira 2910000 ZagrebCroatiawww.savacommission.orgUN-Water Conference on Water Cooperation, Zaragoza, 8-10 Jan. 2013 14 14

Sava River Commission

de United Nations Office to Support the International Decade for Action 'Water for Life' 2005-2015 el 25 de enero, 2013

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