Pure Water for Generations e.V. announces the film premiere "2467km - A trip to the Black Sea"

Prior to the screening a panle discussion will take place with the following participants:

• Ulrich Eichelmann (RiverWatch)
• Georg Frank (Nationalpark Donauauen)
• Alexander Wippel (Big Wave Surfer)
• Ivan Zavadsky (IKSD)
• Pascal Rösler

The 2018 edition of the traditional Danube Water Conference took place on 2 and 3 May 2018 in Vienna, Austria, organised by the International Water Association for the Danube Catchment Area (IAWD) and the World Bank. The Conference brought together more than 120 senior water sector representatives from more than 15 countries, to discuss topics related to „Achieving sustainable water and sanitation for all: progress, challenges and future actions in the Danube Region”.

Via key note speeches, panel discussions, presentations, and interactive workshops, the conference opened topics such as: Challenges in achieving sustainable water and sanitation services (WSS) in the Danube region, International and national actions to achieve sustainable WSS, Smart policies for sector governance, Strong utilities for sustainable services, Smart policies for inclusive services, Innovation in WSS, etc.

The conference paid special attention to capacity development in the water and sanitation sector as a precondition for quality staff and good service. On the first day, Vesna Muslic, President of Aquasan Network in B&H, presented concrete actions on strengthening cooperation and capacities of water utilities and local governments. She also moderated the second-day session on strong utilities for sustainable services aiming to present how capacity building activities can ensure and improve
efficiency and sustainability of water services provision, looking at performed analytical work and
illustrated by number of examples from the region and beyond. Also on the second day of the Conference, Sandi Zulic, Honorary President of Aquasan Network in B&H and Chairperson of Danube Learning Partnership (D-LeaP) Committee Council, presented the status, challenges and outlook of capacity development programs delivered under the Danube Learning Partnership (D-LeaP) highlighting cooperation and sustainability as key points.

The Regional Capacity Development Network for the Water and Sanitation Services (RCDN) in SEE and the opportunities it offers were presented to participants. “RCDN offers a wide spectrum of support measures that increase the capacities of the national Associations of local governments and public utility companies, that shall be the drivers of the capacity development processes; provides a great portfolio of high-quality capacity development products that strengthen capacities of municipalities and public utility companies; and works with all the relevant national stakeholders to enable the supporting environment for effective capacity development”-these were the key messages conveyed by the RCDN Project Implementation Team (PIT), formed by Aquasan, NALAS and IAWD on behalf of GIZ.

The PIT moderated table discussions that further explored topics relevant to capacity development, such as:

• What are further capacity development needs – technical topics vs. soft skills, both for LGUs and water utility companies?
• What are the opportunities and challenges for a utility manager to support the participation of their staff in capacity development initiatives?
• How can LGUs support the capacity development programs delivered by the national associations and vice versa?
• How can national level entities incentivize the uptake of the capacity development programs, e.g. policies or other instruments?

Sandi Zulic also addressed in the closing session of the 2018 Danube Water Conference. He underlined the importance of cooperation between local self-government units and their public utility companies as well cooperation amongst other stakeholders at all levels. One of the forms of such cooperation are platforms for dialogue that Aquasan Network in BiH has already rolled out in Bosnia and Herzegovina with the purpose of achieving better understanding on the need to institutionalise capacity development in BiH legislation and its benefits for successful implementation of projects financed by domestic and international institutions and ultimately improvement of the services in the sector of water services.

On 3 May 2018, RCDN Project Advisory Board meeting was organised. The Board reviewed the activities implemented in the past six months and set the strategic directions for the upcoming period. The Board endorsed the capacity development plan for the partner LGAs and APUCs for 2018, that shall strengthen their capacities in planning and implementation of capacity development programs to serve the needs of their members.  Board members also discussed quality standards for training delivery, pool of trainers, implementation of first CD measures, RCDN operational model and financial scheme and inventory od CD products.

3^rd regional conference “Efficient and Sustainable Water Services in Bosnia and Herzegovina” was organised by Association “Aquasan Network in B&H” from 17 to 19 April 2018 in Mostar.

About 200 participants from Bosnia and Herzegovina and the South-East Europe (SEE) attended the conference. In addition to relevant government representatives from all B&H levels, including representatives of relevant state, entity, cantonal ministries, entity water agencies, representatives of local self-government units (LGUs) and their public water / utility companies (PUCs),representatives of non-governmental organizations and the private sector, representatives of relevant organizations and institutions from Southeast Europe, as well as representatives of national and international financial institutions (MFIs) in B&H and SEE were actively involved in the conference.

Mr. Bosko Kenjic, from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of B&H, stressed that LGUs, together with PUCs, cannot provide the proper services on their own, as there is no proper asset management and human resources management. The legal and institutional framework is the foundation for improving the performance of utility companies. Also, stronger linkage between state and entity institutions with LGUs and PUCs is needed as well as greater accountability both by state and entity institutions.

As Mrs. Hazima Hadzovic, Assistant Minister of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry of FB&H pointed out, legal reform should more precisely regulate water services and establish the link between existing water regulations and other regulations on local self-government, in order to achieve a better route and more efficient solutions for these important questions that require significant financial resources.

We must create a legal framework that will create security and provide guarantees from the outset that the funds to be used will be adequately realized. We must keep in mind that these services have to be affordable to end users, stated Mr. Damir Mrdjen, the director of the Water Agency for Adriatic Sea Watershed from Mostar.

Mr. Sandi Zulic, Honorary President of the Aquasan Network in B&H, pointed out that reforming the water services sector should be initiated urgently. It should incorporate changes in the legal and institutional framework, as well as changes that will result in more intensified human capacity development. Without it, we will not be able to implement the necessary changes in legislation or maintain existing quality of service, and the sustainability of the PUCs as a water services provider and the sustainability of capital infrastructure investments will be more than questionable.

During the three-day conference, different capacity development programs for LGUs and PUCs that Aquasan Network implements in B&H have been presented. These programs are focused on asset management, non-revenue water and energy efficiency of pumping plants in water systems, with particular emphasis on the achievements and benefits of these programs. In addition, the new Regional Capacity Development Network (RCDN) initiative in the area of water supply and sanitation in SEE was presented and discussed.

Dynamic panel sessions were organised to discuss best practices and challenges related to above mentioned programs, and also other relevant topics, such as customer relations, cost accounting, management of waste water treatment plants etc.

This year, a "Platform for Dialogue" meeting was held at the conference, with the focus on "Supporting coordination between IFIs and relevant institutions / organizations in B&H”. The purpose of the meeting was to achieve a better understanding of the need for institutionalization of capacity development in B&H legislation and its benefits for the successful implementation of projects financed by domestic and international institutions and ultimately the improvement of services in the water services sector.

The participants had the opportunity to visit the waste water treatment plant in Mostar, with the support of the representatives of the utility company.

The conference ended with a very attractive topic, the position of young professionals in the water services sector. The emphasis was given to recommendations on how to achieve a good networking between the academic community and the labor market so that young professionals are ready to respond to the real needs of the market after their education.

The Embassy of Switzerland in Bosnia and Herzegovina was official partner of the Conference.

The Conference was organised in cooperation with the B&H Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Association of Municipalities and Cities of the Federation of B&H, Association of Local Authorities of Republika Srpska, Association “Waterworks of Republika Srpska” and Association of Employers of Utility Companies in Federation of B&H as well as Republika Srpska Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, Federation of B&H Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry, Una-Sana Canton Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry and Adriatic Water Catchment Agency Mostar. The organisation of the Conference is supported by the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) through Open Regional Fund for Modernisation of Municipal Services (OFR MMS), Danube Water Program (DWP) through International Association of Water Supply Companies in the Danube River Catchment Area (IAWD) and World Bank.