Water management and spatial planning

He is chair of the Water Advisory Committee in the Netherlands. As Chair of the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation he makes a personal contribution to solving water-related problems all over the world. Since 2004, the Prince has also become involved in spatial planning, a logical extension of his work in the field of integrated water management in the Netherlands.

Posts

• 1998: Patron of the Global Water Partnership, which was established by the World Bank, the United Nations and the Swedish Ministry of Development Cooperation with the aim of achieving integrated water management by turning international environmental agreements into concrete programmes and projects.
• 1999-2000: Member of the committee that coordinated the formulation of the World Water Vision.
• 2000: Chair of the Second World Water Forum in The Hague.
• 2002: Member of the Panel of Eminent Persons convened at the request of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to issue recommendations for the UN conference on sustainable development in Johannesburg. The Prince served on the Panel as an expert on water management.
• 2000-2004: Chair of the Integrated Water Management Commission.
• 2004-present: Chair of the Water Advisory Committee, which replaced the Integrated Water Management Commission.
• 2006-present: Chair of the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation. This Board was set up in 2004 by Kofi Annan to advise him on practical measures that could be taken to achieve the Millennium Development Goals for water and sanitation.

Water management in the Netherlands

Since 2004, the Prince has been chair of the Water Advisory Committee. This independent body advises the Minister for Transport, Public Works and Water Management on the feasibility of water policy and its administrative, financial and social impact, doing so either in response to a specific request or of its own volition. The Committee has published reports on subjects such as safety in the Netherlands in the event of flooding, insuring against the consequences of flooding, the new Water Act and implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive.

As Chair of the Water Advisory Committee, the Prince regularly pays working visits to projects all over the Netherlands, and takes parts in workshops and symposiums.

Water management internationally

In December 2006, the Secretary-General of the United Nations invited the Prince to chair the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, an independent body which was set up in March 2004. The Board's task is not only to advise the Secretary-General but also to promote worldwide action in the field of water and sanitation. The Prince believes that solving the problems relating to access to water and sanitation will play a central role in eradicating poverty and bringing about sustainable development. The UN's goal is to halve, by 2015, the number of people who have no sustainable access to safe drinking water or sanitation. One of the main instruments for achieving this goal is integrated water management.

The Prince is deeply committed to these aims. He has therefore visited many companies and organisations that are active in the water sector, both to keep abreast of the latest developments, and, where possible, to provide a contribution himself. He has also visited a number of countries to gain first-hand knowledge of water-related problems and solutions, and to talk to the main stakeholders and policymakers.

As chair of the Second World Water Forum, patron of the Global Water Partnership and chair of the UN Advisory Board, the Prince repeatedly calls on all parties involved to do their part. He believes that if people are more aware of the importance of water, they will turn their words into deeds.

Spatial Planning Programme

Water is not of course an isolated issue. Other interests also play a part in integrated area development - housing, work, transport, nature and recreation. In a small country like the Netherlands, where space is at a premium, it is essential to find out how these interests influence and strengthen each other. The Prince finds it extremely important to take all interests into careful consideration.

He therefore became involved in the Spatial Planning Programme in 2004. This programme was set up by the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment around three important themes: Integrated Area Development, Space and Climate, and European Space. They have formed the basis of a series of working visits paid by the Prince in the past few years.