Hungary is proud that Chad as the first non-European country has joined the UNECE Water Convention during the Hungarian presidency.
H.E. Zsuzsanna Horváth, Permanent Representative of Hungary to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Geneva conveyed the warm welcome by the Government of Hungary to the Government of Chad on the occasion that the Latter joined the UNECE Water Convention. Hungary is proud that the first non-European country has joined the Convention during our presidency of the Convention. Please find below the speech delivered by Ambassador Horváth.
“Thank you Your Excellency.
Let me start by saying how proud I am that the first non-European country has joined the UNECE Water Convention during the Hungarian presidency. I applaud sincerely the Government of Chad on this special occasion and offer our continuous full support and cooperation in the future.
Speaking on behalf of Hungary, a country, which is both upstream and downstream, and 96% of its waters come from transboundary sources, we recognize that water is an exceptionally valuable natural resource. For Hungary, it is only natural to be an active participant in „water diplomacy” and remain committed to a future in which there is a single international legal framework universally applicable to the international community. In this vein, Hungary supports the universalisation of the UNECE Water Convention, which enlarges its geographical scope.
I am sure you all are familiar with the following facts: some 3 in 10 people worldwide, or 2.1 billion, have no access to safe, readily available water, and 6 in 10, or 4.5 billion, have no access to sanitation. Without going into further details, the forecasts show an even more alarming scenario. In the meantime 70% of the water is used by agricultural activities, 23% by industry and 7% by municipal purposes globally. 3 out of 4 jobs in the world rely on water – about 1.3 billion people are currently employed in sectors heavily dependent on water.
Admittedly, water security is the key to sustainable development. Hungary has launched various initiatives and programmes aiming to support countries that do not have appropriate water infrastructure systems – or water, for that matter. As a result of our recent aid programmes, Hungary has constructed water-related infrastructural systems on three continents: Asia, South America and Europe.
Hungary’s recent participation in the High Level Panel on Water well-reflects our commitment to water diplomacy. H.E. President Jánor Áder represented Hungary in the High Level Panel on Water upon the request of the previous Secretary General of the United Nations.
We now know that the Budapest Water Summit organised in 2013 contributed in its own way to averting the global crisis through its role in the formulation of a stand-alone Sustainable Development Goal in the 2030 Agenda. Three years later, the Budapest Water Summit 2016 – attended by over 2,200 participants from 117 countries – represented a milestone in the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 6, the stand-alone goal in the 2030 Agenda involving water and sanitation.
In order to share its best practices and contribute to the global dialogue on water, Hungary will participate this year in the Voluntary National Review of the High-Level Political Forum, where SDG 6 will be one of the themes this year.
Thank you for your attention!”