The OIC Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (OIC-COMSTECH), OIC General Secretariat and SESRIC have jointly organised the online training “Building a Resilient Water Future: A 3-Day Intensive Training on Inclusive Governance, Data-Driven Decision Making, and Project Mobilization for Water Security in OIC Member States” from 7 to 9 September 2026 in collaboration with the national and regional stakeholders.
The training aimed to strengthen the capacities of water-sector professionals and policymakers from OIC Member States in addressing key water security challenges through inclusive governance, data-driven decision-making, effective project development, financing and partnerships. The programme brought together experts from OIC institutions, UN agencies, multilateral development banks and specialised organisations to share knowledge, experiences and good practices on sustainable water management.
The training commenced with the opening remarks, H.E. Prof. Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Choudhary, Coordinator General of OIC-COMSTECH, followed by H.E. Zehra Zümrüt Selçuk, Director General of SESRIC and H.E. Ambassador Aftab Ahmad Khokher, Assistant Secretary General for Science and Technology of the OIC General Secretariat. In her remarks, H.E. Selçuk highlighted the importance of strengthened cooperation, institutional capacity and evidence-based approaches in addressing the growing water security challenges faced by OIC Member States. She further underlined the need to combine effective governance, reliable data, technical expertise and stronger partnerships to develop sustainable and resilient solutions for the water sector.
On the second day of the training, Mr. Abdulhamit Öztürk, Coordinator of the Statistical Outreach Section at SESRIC, delivered a presentation on the efforts and insights of the Centre related to research, statistics and capacity building on water resources management. The session highlighted the importance of reliable statistical data and quality indicators for understanding water-related challenges, supporting evidence-based policymaking, and informing investment and development priorities. It also explored the use of data and digital tools by showcasing the OIC Statistics (OICStat) Database and its Water category indicators to strengthen water management and monitor progress towards the development goals at the OIC and global levels.
The third day of the training featured a panel discussion titled “Towards a Strategic Water Cooperation Roadmap”, moderated by Ms. Simi Kamal, Chairperson of the Hisaar Foundation, Pakistan, with the participation of SESRIC as a panellist. The panel discussed approaches to strengthening water technical cooperation among OIC Member States and provided an opportunity to exchange views on the proposed roadmap for OIC water cooperation. SESRIC highlighted the existing tools of the Centre for cooperation: the OIC Water Report presented regularly to the Islamic Conference of Ministers Responsible for Water, its capacity-building programmes, such as the Water Resources Management Capacity Building Programme (Water-CaB) and the Statistical Capacity Building Programme (StatCaB), stressing the importance of identifying the needs and capacities of Member States and linking technical expertise among them, as well as increasing the national statistical capacities for more effective water management.
The training concluded with remarks on strengthening technical cooperation, knowledge exchange, financing and partnerships for resilient and sustainable water futures. SESRIC’s contributions reaffirmed its continued support to OIC Member States through capacity building, statistical cooperation and socio-economic research in support of the objectives of the OIC Water Vision.
For more information on SESRIC’s statistical capacity building activities, please visit:
https://www.oicstatcom.org/statcab.php
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