site.btaUPDATED Building a Water Smart Society through Blue Diplomacy Conference Takes Place in Sofia

A half-day high-level conference, entitled Building a Water Smart Society through Blue Diplomacy, organized by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in partnership with the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association (BICA), Water Europe and Veolia, will bring together European and Bulgarian stakeholders, policymakers, industry representatives, organised civil society, academia and media, on Tuesday at 9:30 am at the Royal Hall of the Sofia Balkan Palace Hotel. 

The objective is to promote the need for an EU Blue Deal and a water-smart strategy at the national level and open up opportunities to engage with local stakeholders and identify avenues for knowledge transfer.

The forum opening is expected to be attended by BICA Board Chairman Vasil Velev, Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) President Plamen Dimitrov and Caretaker Environment and Water Minister Petar Dimitrov. Keynote speaker at the conference will be Pietro Francesco De Lotto, President of the Consultative Commission for Industrial Change (CCMI) to EESC, BICA said in a press release.

In order to deliver on the specific and comprehensive Blue Deal initiative implemented through Blue Diplomacy, the EU needs to mobilise all resources, especially those at Member State level, to create a workable set of innovative technological solutions as a source for "knowledge transfer" and sharing of best practices that will foster transboundary cooperation on water issues.

Bulgaria is rich in water resources of all kinds and has a long tradition of wise and sustainable water management and solutions, BICA noted. Its geographic position makes it necessary to share responsibility for the important water basins - such as the Black Sea, the Danube, Struma, and Mesta.