ABSTRACT
In order to achieve sustainable development, the 1st World Water Forum in Marrakech (1997), the 2nd World Water Forum in The Hague (2000) and the 3rd World Water Forum in Kyoto, Shiga and Osaka (2003) brought together tens of thousands of participants. The aim was to focus the world’s attention on the importance of aquatic resources and stimulate direct-action towards meeting the difficult challenges of improving water resources management, conserving natural resources and improving people's lives around the world. Meanwhile, the World Water Council has been promoting awareness and building political commitment on critical water issues at all levels, including the highest decision-making level, to facilitate the efficient conservation, protection, development, planning, management and use of water in all its dimensions on an environmentally sustainable basis for the benefit of all life on earth. These worldwide events all identified that information and knowledge sharing is vital to the effective management of water resources and to environmental sustainability (WWF3, 2003). At the United Nations Johannesburg Summit (2002), it was concluded that technology development and transfer are required to promote world water security (Rijsberman, 2003).
