The World Water Forum is organised every three years by the World Water Council in collaboration with the authorities of the host country. It is the largest international event in the field of water. It serves to raise the importance of water on the political agenda and to generate political commitment to solve international water issues in the 21^st century.

Themes of the Fifth World Water Forum are:

• Global Change & Risk Management
• Advancing Human Development and the MDGs
• Managing and Protecting Water Resources and their Supply Systems to Meet Human and Environmental Needs
• Governance and Management
• Finance
• Education, Knowledge and Capacity Development

For the 5th World Water Forum in March 2009 ICLEI joined forces with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), the World Water Council and the City of Istanbul to ensure that the role of local governments in the water sector becomes more adequately recognised and supported.

Local and Regional Authorities Days

Programme

ICLEI strongly encourages its members to engage in this process by:

• becoming a leader in sustainable water and sanitation management through signing and implementing the commitments of the Istanbul Water Consensus for Local and Regional Authorities

Also listen to interviews with

• Margaret Pageler, Former President Seattle City Council, Seattle, USA;
• Gilles Ouderman, Advisor to the Mayor of Rotterdam on European and International Affairs, the Neetherlands;
• Fernando Gimeno Marín, Vice Mayor of Zaragoza, Spain;
• and others, recorded on World Water Day 2008, at the Kick-off meeting of the Political Process for Local Authorities