ITN-BUET signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement with the Global Water and Sanitation Centre (GWSC) at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand, on 30 November 2022.
The partnership is made for long-term collaboration of research and capacity-building activities, fellowships and student exchange, sanitation curriculum review support, knowledge exchange, and dissemination, and support between ITN-BUET and GWSC to create better opportunities for South-South collaboration in the sanitation sector.
The signing event took place during the launching ceremony of the Global Water & Sanitation Center (GWSC), funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The event focused on advancing WSH strategy, scaling the SDG 6.2 impacts, accelerating SDG 6.2, and driving collective impact.
Three captivating panel discussion sessions took place, engaging representatives of the government of Nepal, Bangladesh, and India and representatives from International Financial Institutions (IFIs). The discussion attempted to accelerate and scale SDG 6.2 outcomes given that business as usual is not delivering results, and significant paradigm shifts are anticipated to achieve desired changes within the expected timeline.
Professor Dr. Tanvir Ahmed of ITN-BUET moderated one of the panel discussions, Paradigm Shift: Accelerating the SDG 6.2. The discussion evolved around how IFIs defined the pathways to support governments in achieving SDG 6.2 outcomes by 2030, IFIs’ perception of CWIS and the role of TA Hub in amplifying the IFI’s efforts and outcomes, and finally, how TA Hub can provide its services. Representatives from Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and World Bank.
More than 140 participants representing more than 45 organizations, including International Financing Institutions (World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Islamic Development Bank), Development Partners (United Nations Children’s Fund, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Development Programme, United States Agency for International Development), academic and research institutions, and governmental agencies attended the launching event.
