Dutch minister Schultz calls for action on mitigation water-related disasters

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Dutch minister Schultz calls for action on mitigation water-related disasters

"All delta cities in the world share the same problems, so let us work together and act now", Dutch minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen said at the opening plenary of the Singapore International Water Week 2014 on 2 June. It is time for international cooperation, the Dutch minister said and she extended an invitation to partner with the Netherlands in its pro-active attitude and no longer wait for water-related disasters to happen.

The Dutch minister for Infrastructure and Environment warned that disasters will continue to occur in the future, whether it concerns floods, droughts, water pollution or land subsidence. By international cooperation it is possible to make a difference, she told her global audience.

Global initiative for risk mitigation
As vice chair of the High level Experts and Leaders' Panel on Water and Disasters (HELP) minister Schultz also discussed the preventive measures at the meeting of UNSGAB, the advisory board on water and sanitation of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

"The Netherlands has been working with water for more than 800 years. Anno 2014 flooding, water shortages and pollution are still worldwide big challenges. The Netherlands wants to reach out to other countries and help. We want to be leading in the world of water and sustainability. I feel a moral obligation to rapidly make our knowledge globally available, she said at the UNSGAB meeting.

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