9th World Water Forum - Swiss Pavilion Side Event - Legal and institutional mechanisms to promote cooperation on dams in transboundary watercourses : the Euphrates and Tigris case

Large dam construction is experiencing a renaissance worldwide. Damming a river is an opportunity for energy production and agriculture development. It can however create conflicts between sectors across multiple scales. Focusing on these challenges and on existing dynamics at play, the Geneva Water Hub and IUCN’s Environmental Law Centre launched the initiative “Dams: water flows regulation in a fragmented world”.

Its first endeavour is to elaborate an assessment of the legal tools applicable to dams planning, developing and monitoring. This assessment includes a compendium of references grouping and analyzing the main frameworks and principles to be considered when addressing the challenges of dams in general and large dams in particular.

In the context of this Geneva Water Hub and IUCN initiative, this session aims to discuss the challenges and opportunities for cooperation in the Euphrates and Tigris basin. After presenting the lessons learnt from the joint regime on dams in the Senegal river and the Practical Guide for the Development of Agreements or Other Arrangements for Transboundary Water Cooperation, the speakers will exchange on the need to establish a legal framework on the Euphrates and Tigris basin based on the principles of international water law.

The event flyer is available below.

The full programme of the Swiss Pavillon is available below.