István Õri, Hungarian State Secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Water Management and ICPDR President for 2005.

In its continuing series, Danube Watch presents portraits of the leaders whose passion and commitment actively steer ICPDR processes and help determine the future of our river basin.

DANUBE WATCH: Welcome to your new position Mr President. How does Hungary's unique connection to the Danube play a role in transboundary affairs?

István Õri: Hungary is situated at the bottom of the Carpathian Basin and surrounded by seven neighbouring countries. We share most of our mid-size river basins and many groundwater bodies, and 95% of Hungary's surface water originates from abroad. As a result, transboundary cooperation on such important issues as water allocation, prevention of transboundary pollution, and flood control are of vital importance to us.

Being an upstream as well as a downstream country in the heart of the Danube Basin, we are proud to play an active role in Danube cooperation and solidarity development. Allow me just to mention our efforts in the initiation of the convention, our work to widen the scope of cooperation with ecological issues and flood control, and to stimulate sub-basin cooperation. During our presidency we wish to further strengthen the spirit of cooperation and contribute to its development by fulfilling our obligations on one hand, and sharing our experiences gained in transboundary cooperation and in EU accession on the other.

DANUBE WATCH: How will the results of last year's Ministerial Meeting affect your presidency?

István Õri: The Ministerial Meeting held on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Danube River Protection Convention was a milestone in the life of Danube cooperation. The objectives and tasks defined in the Danube Declaration and in the other key documents are the main challenges for the ICPDR in the coming years. The key to progress will be increased country commitment, strengthening cooperation between neighbouring countries, and developing sub-basin cooperation.

I am committed to keeping these processes on the right track during my presidency. At the same time, I wish to pay special attention to improving participation and full integration of the new and non-EU member contracting parties, facilitating financial and technical assistance to them to the extent possible.

It is very important to further improve cooperation with the UNDP/GEF Danube Regional Project, as well as with other supporters of our efforts, and to further build the partnership with professional organisations relevant to our work like the Black Sea Commission and the Danube Commission in charge of navigation issues.

Catherine Day, former ICPDR President and Director General of the Directorate General for Environment of the EU Commission, presents a bottle of Danube water representing the ICPDR presidency to István Õri, on January 18.

DANUBE WATCH: What is the significance of the cooperation in the Tisza River Basin?

István Õri: The Tisza river basin, shared by five countries, is the largest tributary of the Danube and the specificity of its hydrography and the socio-economic features of the countries concerned justify the need for sub-regional cooperation. Therefore, we are especially pleased and thankful to the EU for facilitating the Tisza cooperation development during its ICPDR presidency. Our hope is that with further support from the EU, as well as the involvement of other external support, the joint efforts of the countries concerned will lead to increased environmental safety, water protection and flood control in the Tisza River Basin.

The Sava River Basin cooperation is more advanced at the moment, and we hope that the Tisza will catch up soon and countries sharing other sub-basins will also decide to go in this direction where and when they find it appropriate. The Prut River, shared by Moldova, Ukraine and Romania, is already considered the next potential sub-basin initiative. Sava and Tisza experiences are advisable to share.

DANUBE WATCH: How will the celebration of Danube Day this year bring the Danube closer to the Danube people?

István Õri: Government efforts in environmental protection, nature conservation and water management are not enough - support from the public and interest groups is essential. This year the ICPDR will focus on national Danube Days to show our objectives to the people, establish a dialogue with the public, and develop cooperation and involvement where appropriate.

In this respect, a stakeholder conference will be held in Budapest as an important event to celebrate Danube Day. This will be an opportunity to introduce the activities of the ICPDR, and the conference will provide an opportunity for representatives of stakeholder groups from all over the basin to get information, to comment and at the same time to discuss their role in supporting the processes of the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive.

I call on all those devoted to or responsible for the waters and related ecosystems of the Danube Basin to join the celebration of Danube society and contribute to the success of Danube Day 2005.

DANUBE WATCH: Thank you Mr Õri and all the best for your presidency!

István Õri

István Õri has had a long career of experience working to protect water and the environment. He received his first degree from OTKI Medical College in Budapest, a degree in Public Health and Epidemic Studies.

This was followed up later by a degree in Computer System Analysis from the SZÁMALK System Analysis Faculty, and a degree in Environmental Engineering from the Budapest University of Technology.

In addition, Mr Õri has had extensive training in the fields of Public Administration and Environmental Issues.

Employment and Professional Experience
November 2002		Permanent State Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water
2002		Commissioner in charge of Restructuring the Ministry of Environment and Water
2001-2002		Head of Department for Environmental Protection, Capital Budapest Municipality, Lord Mayor's Office
1999-2001		Head of Department, Hungarian Committee for Technological Development and its legal successor, Ministry of Education
1996-1999		Head of Department, Ministry for Environment and Regional Policy, and its legal successor, Ministry of Environment; Hungarian Delegate for Pollution Prevention and Mitigation Working Group of OECD; Chief of the Environmental Experts' Working Group preparing the accession to EU
1997		Chief of EITB 22. Working Group, Member of the European Integration Inter-ministerial Committee (EITB), Member of the Hungarian Government's Permanent EU Negotiating Delegation, Chief EU Negotiator on Environment
1980-1996		Expert and Office Director, National Authority for Environmental Protection and Nature Conservation, Institute for Environmental Protection, and its legal successor, Institute for Environmental Management