ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell University Institute for African Development (IAD) will host a two-day symposium, "Hydropolitics and Geopolitics in Africa," April 22-23 in McManus Lounge, Hollister Hall, on the Cornell campus.

The symposium -- free and open to the public -- brings together experts in water resource management, economics and political science among other disciplines for a discussion concerning water-related issues.

Only 2.5 percent of the Earth's water supply is fresh water, and less than 1 percent of that water is renewable. Potential "water wars" are likely in areas where rivers and lakes are shared by more than one country. Some 85 percent of Africa's water resources are composed of large river basins shared among several countries. Effective water management thus needs to be multi-objective and must address competing priorities and, often, conflicting interests.

"Complicating the situation further is the globalization of water resources, accompanied by the privatization of water services, which has added an edge to the question of equity, in a state of affairs in which water is seen as another commodity," says Muna Ndulo, IAD director. "Multinationals regard water as a 'commodity' while civil society groups see access to water as a basic human right."

Norman Uphoff, director of the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development, will deliver a keynote talk Friday, April 22, at 3:30 p.m. This will be followed by a session on "Transnational Conflict and-or Cooperation in Managing Water Resources" and a reception. The symposium reconvenes Saturday, April 23, at 8:30 a.m. in the same location. The event is sponsored by IAD and co-sponsored by the Africa Faith and Justice Network, Washington, D.C., the Africana Studies and Research Center, the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering and the Center for Global Education at George Mason University. For more information, visit the IAD Web site at http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu/africa/conference/ict/ , contact the IAD office at (607) 255-6849 or e-mail CIAD@cornell.edu.