Free Flow

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Water expertise and cooperation:

Hungary’s international policy

Dr Gábor Baranyai, Chair of Organizing Committee, Budapest Water Summit, and Deputy State Secretary,

EU Sectoral Policies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hungary

ungarians’ special relationship with water must flow

from the particular geographical features of the country.

Hungary is a landlocked country lying in the middle

of one of the world’s largest closed topographical units: the

Carpathian Basin. The Alpine ranges surrounding Hungary

discharge water through 24 watercourses into the predominantly

flat country, but water leaves only through three major rivers:

the River Danube and two of its tributaries, the rivers Tisza and

Dráva. As a result, one quarter of the country is exposed to floods,

which is exceptional in Europe. However, this abundance of water

is counterbalanced by the relatively dry continental climate of the

basin. Thus, floods and droughts may follow each other with a

frequency unknown in other parts of the world.

Hungary is also rich in groundwater resources. The huge unpol-

luted underground reserves along the Danube, north and south of

the capital city of Budapest, provide affordable drink-

ing water for almost 3 million people. The region’s

abundant thermal water resources have also been

exploited since Roman times. Alone in Budapest, over

68 million litres of water bubble into 118 springs

and boreholes every day. The ‘city of spas’ offers an

astounding array of baths, from the Ottoman hamam

to neo-baroque bathing palaces.

As a result of its outstanding exposure to diverse

hydrological challenges, Hungary has historically

developed significant expertise in water manage-

ment. To safeguard its water resources, the country

has introduced a stringent legal regime and a solid

institutional framework in water and sanitation

management. Centuries of tradition in this area have

been supported by a solid academic, educational and

ater

ooperation

, S

ustainability

and

overty

radication

The Carpathian Basin

Source: Somlyódy, 2002

Hungary’s geography has created a special relationship with water