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March 2006—World Water Forum in Mexico City. Eau Vive, France Libertés, les Amis de la Terre invite you to a premier! A side event opening the debate between the actors of the alternative events and those of the official Forum. Is there a place for the public management of water? The official Forum on one side, the alternative forum on the other… for one hour, a side event organized by French NGOs is going to put around the table the actors from the official Forum and those involved in the alternative events to demonstrate that an access to water for all is not possible without a strong public service. But what signifies a strong public service? For many, it's a transparent, solid, and competent service based on the principals of social equity. However, a question must be asked: what models respond the best to the demands? On 18 March 2006, in the French stand at the Banamex centre of the World Water Forum, from 1:45-2:30 a meeting will create a bridge between the official and alternative forums while bringing together the present organisations in these two international meetings (NGOs, associations of users, elected officials, public powers, developmental agencies, business). A number of innovative public examples proved the capacity of the local actors to assure a service of grand quality accessible to all. It is fundamental to promote them and to open debate with the actors of the official forum on the public management, a subject too often eluded in the institutional environment. On the menu, the ASSEMAE (the association of the municipal and public management) will explain in which manner the public municipal management consolidated itself in Brazil to bring water and decontamination in the cities overtaken by sometimes one million inhabitants. The Minister of Bolivian water will present to us the current reform in his country, which poses all the issues of an effective and social public management; finally, Danielle Mitterrand of the Fondation France Liberté, Oliver Hoedeman of Corporate Europe Observatory, Maggie White of Eau Vive and Majda Bouchanine of les Amis de la Terre will put forth the work lead by the civil society organisations to support the work by the local initiatives. This side event hopes to create a dialogue between those who intervene and the participants to elucidate and overcome the blockages in the public service work, notably in Bolivia, and to set the first basis of a long-term dialogue with the French public power, so as to advance the numerous demands defended by about thirty associations in the “Call of French associations to the World Water Forum” . Press Contacts: Maggie White, Eau Vive: (+52) 55 12 34 82 96 |