Water Authority of Fiji CEO, Dr Amit Chanan, met with members from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Institute for Global Development (IGD), yesterday (02/11/22).
The UNSW team, which comprised senior members of UNSW, was led by Dr Goerge Varghese, who is the Director for the UNSW Institute for Global Development. The delegation also includes Dr Greg Leslie, who is the Director of UNSW Global Water Institute & the UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology.
Dr Chanan said that the discussion focussed on the mutually beneficial opportunities for partnership and collaboration with WAF.
“This will enable WAF to look at improving its system whilst providing UNSW with a valuable resource for research and development,” said Dr Chanan.
“Multilateral partnerships allow for a more diverse range of viewpoints and data that paints a fuller picture, which is crucial when developing strategies to address wicked problems like water security at a national. Collaboration is particularly essential when responding to critical issues like climate change, which is affecting the whole South Pacific region.”
The meeting is part of an ongoing initiative to accelerate progress towards Sustainable Development Goals in the region. UNSW experts are meeting with UN representatives, local UNSW Alumni and Fijian officials to foster strategic and knowledgeable partnerships that help address sustainable development challenges in the Asia Pacific.
With the support of the UN, the UNSW Institute for Global Development (IGD) will convene a workshop series in Suva, Fiji. The workshops will cover a range of topic areas including; ‘Pacific-led Research and Policy Agendas: Reimagining Pacific Research and Development’, and, ‘Building Strategic Knowledge Partnerships in the Asia Pacific’.”
Developmental progress in the Indo-Pacific region will determine timely achievement of the SDGs globally. The environment, health, and education related challenges of the Pacific are of most significant concern worldwide. Issue-based knowledge partnerships can help drive new forms of collaboration to tackle these challenges in and around Australia,” said Dr George Varughese, Director, IGD.
Members in attendance, included:
Dr George Varughese – Director, UNSW Institute for Global Development
lain Payne – Senior Project Officer, UNSW Institute for Global Development
Jacqui Webster – Head of Advocacy and Policy Impact, The George Institute for Global Health & Professor, UNSW Medicine & Health
Greg Leslie – Director, UNSW Global Water Institute & Director, UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology at UNSW
Jordan Gacutan – Secretariat Officer, Global Accounts Partnership & PhD candidate, UNSW Science
Steven Sherwood – Deputy Director, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Science
