Farmer adjusting spray-irrigation. Picture Credit-Shaoyu Yu, IWMI
On 17 Oct 2018, Andrew Ross, Australian National University, presented an international webinar about GRIPP as part of the ICE WaRM/NCGRT GRIPP Groundwater Series. Dr Ross outlined the key role of groundwater in global sustainable development, and explained GRIPP’s objective, added advantage, strategies, activities and outputs. GRIPP’s unique contribution is contingent on the high level of expertise and advocacy skills of its partners, its broad networking base, its solutions orientation, responsiveness to demand and flexibility, integrative capacity and easy access to evidence, cases and tools. GRIPP’s strategic approach includes creating long-term partnerships, advocacy, communication and outreach, filling knowledge gaps, sharing transferable solutions, and scaling up successes through online publications and development projects in collaboration with countries and other international and national partners. Established in 2016, GRIPP has already achieved significant results including increasing the profile of groundwater in the UN High-Level Panel on Water, contributions to the development of projects in Africa and Asia, reports and books on groundwater in the UN system and on groundwater governance and case profiles of groundwater innovation. GRIPP’s work program for 2018-19 includes mapping, identification and documentation of groundwater-based development solutions, development of guidance and support to groundwater aspects of the SDGs, groundwater in the 2019 world water development report and follow-up to GRIPPs initiative on groundwater based natural infrastructure. Over 80 people from 15 countries attended the webinar. Questions ranged from very technical matters such as groundwater recharge using treated effluent, policy settings for managed aquifer recharge and details of projects in southern Africa to more general concerns about how to maintain efforts towards sustainable groundwater development. The webinar recording is available here. Readers wishing to stay in touch with GRIPP developments can subscribe to GRIPP news and updates here and receive news to their mailboxes.
