Tag Archives: WASH

AICS Hanoi at the 10th World Water Forum 2024: Italy and Vietnam for Water Security

AICS Director, Marco Rusconi, Prof. Francesco Corvaro and the Italian Ambassador, Benedetto Latteri at the ribbon cut ceremony, AICS stand, WWF 2024

 

23rd  May – Together with the headquarter of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, AICS Hanoi participates in the 10th World Water Forum 2024 from the 18th to 25th May 2024 held in Bali, Indonesia.

The Forum’s central theme is “Water for Shared Prosperity”, a topic of utmost importance for the AICS mission.

Within this context, AICS Hanoi boasts a long commitment to the water sector, as proven by the implementation of a considerable package of water-related projects in Vietnam, contributing to the Agency’s mission in implementing the 2030 Sustainable Agenda.

On May 22nd, from the AICS Pavilion in Bali, AICS Hanoi presented a hybrid workshop entitled “Enhancing Water Security in Vietnam: Challenges and Strategies“. The workshop has been an opportunity to provide participants with an overview on the management of water resources within the country and with insights of the challenges encountered and the solutions implemented by the Vietnamese Government with the support of Italian Cooperation.

 

Annamaria Iotti and Luca Sartorelli at AICS Hanoi Workshop, WWF 2024

Ms Annamaria Iotti, AICS Hanoi Head of Office, opened the session and highlighted how Italy, as Vietnam’s crucial partner since the 1990s, has implemented several initiatives in the country related to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) and Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in partnership with the Vietnamese Government and the local provinces.

On the Vietnamese side, Ms Nguyen Thuy Anh, Head of the Development Cooperation Board from the Department of Water Resources Management of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Vietnam (MONRE), discussed the current state of Vietnam’s water resources, providing updates on the Government’s water resource policies. Finally, she outlined some of the strategic actions needed to ensure water security, considering all the challenges posed by climate change, the lack of water accessibility and droughts, to name some of those Vietnam are facing due to its rapid socioeconomic growth.

Mr Luca Sartorelli, AICS Hanoi WASH Coordinator present in Bali, moderated the workshop. Mr Daniele Pittalis, WASH Program Officer, and Mr Nguyen Quoc Dung, Liaison Officer, focused on the two-level engagement of the Agency: water resource management and water access, quality, and hygiene. The workshop emphasized AICS approach towards solutions and strategies that promote Blue Economy for a better planning and management of water usage in Vietnam.

 

 

The Italian Delegation at WWF 2024

The AICS participates in the 10th World Water Forum with four field offices (Hanoi, Tunis, Cairo and Maputo), various institutional stakeholders (Water Museum Global Network – UNESCO, CIHEAM Bari, One Water Italian Committee) and representatives of the private sector (Acea, Acquedotto Pugliese, Veragon); all of them working in the water sector at different levels.  The Italian Delegation at WWF, led by Prof. Francesco Corvaro, Italian Government’s Special Envoy for Climate Change, includes the Italian Ambassador to Indonesia, Benedetto Latteri, and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation Director, Mr Marco Riccardo Rusconi. 

On May 20th, at the inauguration of the AICS Pavilion, during his open speech, Mr Rusconi stated: “Italy has developed a long tradition in the conservation and management of water resources, and, thanks to an ever-increasing awareness of civil society and national stakeholders on the topic of water, it has a clear role as a leading country in the water sector”.

Aics Hanoi: Exploratory mission of Dr. Margherita Lulli, newly appointed Head of the Office

Hanoi—In the week between July 22nd and 26th, Ms Margherita Lulli, who will take over as Head of the Aics Hanoi office from Ms Annamaria Iotti starting September 1st , carried out an exploratory mission in the country to gain an initial overview of the context and initiatives implemented by Italian cooperation in Vietnam and the Far East. Ms Lulli is currently Technical Officer of the V° Office “Environment and Land Use” of the Headquarters of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation.

During her presence in Hanoi, Ms Lulli had an initial tangible approach to the ongoing projects, also supported by an intensive agenda of

AICS Hanoi Team and Ms Margherita Lulli

meetings with Heads of Mission of the diplomatic representations with which the office works, counterparts and institutional partners, and the entire AICS Hanoi Team.

“I take this opportunity to wish the future Head of the AICS Hanoi Office a fruitful work experience in Vietnam. The country, as well as the entire region we are operating, is very stimulating, also in terms of development cooperation that follows modern times, with new challenges and opportunities for the entire Italian system,” said Ms Iotti.

Ms Lulli met the Italian Ambassador to Hanoi, H.E. Marco Della Seta, and had virtual meetings with the Italian Ambassadors to Manila, H.E. Davide Giglio, and Dhaka, H.E. Antonio Alessandro. She also participated in the Development Advisors meeting hosted by the Delegation of the European Union in Vietnam and AICS Hanoi sectoral sessions with the Program Experts of the office’s initiatives.

Among the Vietnamese counterparts, she met with Dr Ngo Manh Ha, Deputy Director General of the Department of Water Management of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, and Dr Hoang Thi Thanh Ha, Director of the Department of Foreign Statistics and International Cooperation of the National Institute of Statistics.

To date, AICS Hanoi has focused its action on water resources management, Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), the action on climate change, health, and sustainable rural development in Vietnam, the Philippines, and the Small Island States of the Pacific and at a regional level by promoting the development cooperation component of the Italy-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) partnership. AICS Hanoi, also, intervenes in humanitarian and peace-building activities in Myanmar and Bangladesh.