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dam-l WCD S. Asia Public Hearing: Call for Submissions

The following has just been put out by the WCD secretariat. The Public
Hearing will be held immediately after the WCD's second meeting, to take
place in Delhi, Sept. 19 and 20. Similar hearings will be held in other
regions over the next two years.

Patrick
_________________________________________


***CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS***


WATER AND ENERGY IN SOUTH ASIA: LARGE DAMS AND ALTERNATIVES

Public Hearing of the World Commission on Dams

Introduction: This is a call for presentation proposals and submissions in
connection with an upcoming public hearing on the experiences and lessons
learnt with water and energy development across South Asia, with a specific
focus on large dams.  The public hearing is being organized by the newly
established World Commission on Dams, and will be held on September 21 and
22, 1998 in India.

The World Commission on Dams: The World Commission on Dams (WCD) is an
independent international commission constituted under the auspices of a
wide array of representatives from governments, civil society, the private
sector and international organizations.

Professor Kadar Asmal, Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry for the
Republic of South Africa, is the appointed chair of the WCD.  He is joined
by eleven other distinguished individuals including two eminent Indians --
L.C. Jain, Indian High Commissioner to the Republic of South Africa and
Medha Patkar, Co-Convenor of the National Alliance for Peoples' Movements
-- who together with the Secretary General form the Commission.

The WCD's key objectives are to conduct a global review of the development
effectiveness of large dams; formulate an options assessments and decision
making framework for the sustainable management of water and energy
resources; and propose a set of internationally accepted criteria and
guidelines for the planning, appraisal, design, construction, operation,
monitoring and decommissioning of large dams.  The guiding principles of
the WCD are openness, transparency, inclusiveness and accessibility.


The Public Hearing: A public hearing for South Asia is being convened to
assist the Commission in fulfilling its mandate by achieving the following
goals:

*               inviting a broad range of interested parties to participate
in and inform the WCD's work
*               facilitating the public exchange of ideas and views among
various constituencies in the region
*               providing the Commissioners with an opportunity to develop
a core base of shared knowledge

The public hearing will take place on September 21 and 22, 1998 most likely
in Bhopal, India.  The format will be one of panels composed of three to
four presentations each.  The panels will run approximately one and
one-half hours long with each presenter being allocated between fifteen and
twenty minutes.  This will leave about thirty minutes for a questions and
answers session at the end of every panel.

Invitations for Presentations: The WCD invites all interested persons to
submit proposals for presentations related to the key objectives outlined
above, focusing on the experiences and lessons learnt locally, nationally,
or regionally across South Asia.  Possible topics, among others, include:

*               planning and implementation of large dams and alternatives
*               social impacts and issues related to large dams and alternatives
*               environmental impacts and issues related to large dams and
alternatives
*               economic/financial impacts and issues related to large dams
and alternatives
*               options for sustainable water and energy resource
management and development
*               options for decision making processes including
participatory approaches
*               evaluations of decision-making and institutional structures
and capacities
*               assessments of value and effectiveness of existing criteria
and guidelines

A two-page summary of the proposed presentation will be due no later than
August 28, 1998.  Selection for presentations will be based on the
relevance of the topic, quality of submission and experience/expertise of
presenter.  Proposals for presentation that are not formal submissions will
be entertained.  Those selected to present will be informed by September 5,
1998.

Invitation for Submissions: In addition to proposals for presentation at
the hearing, submissions not for presentation of materials documenting the
experiences and lessons learnt with large dams and the sustainable
development of water and energy resources in South Asia are encouraged.
These submissions can be prepared in written, audio, video or other format.

Contact Information: Please call: ++27 21 426 4000, fax: ++27 21 426 0038,
or e-mail: info@dams.org for all inquiries.  Interested parties can also
visit the WCD web-site, http://www.dams.org for further information.

Please send submissions to the World Commission on Dams Secretariat by
e-mail to: soashear@dams.org, by fax to: ++27 21 426 0038, or by post to:
World Commission on Dams - c/o India Hearing, 5th Floor, Hycastle House, 58
Loop Street, PO Box 16002, Vlaeberg, Cape Town, 8018, South Africa