The 5th World Water Forum (WWF) began Monday in the largest Turkish city of Istanbul with an aim to promote cooperation among states and organizations to facilitate solutions to the world's water problems.

The week-long main water-related event in the world, which convene here on March 16-22 with the theme of "Bridging Divides for Water," is attracting a record of 25,000 participants all over the world, including 25 heads of states, some 180 ministers and UN representatives.

Among the participants are Turkish President Abdullah Gul, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani of Iraq, Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon, Crown Prince Willem Alexander of the Netherlands, Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito Kotaishi and South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-Soo.

The host President Gul opened the forum, stressing that "water is the most fundamental element to life and to our survival."

"It's clear that we have to place special importance on water" since it is "one of the most crucial elements" that drive sustainable development, he added.

The Turkish head of state said that people have an increasing need for water resources for the purpose of economic development and prosperity, food production and improvement of health and sanitation, adding water does not only mean "life," but also " civilization."

He called the international community to put water high on the agenda and make concrete policies to preserve the precious resources.

Loic Fauchon, the President of the World Water Council (WWC) also told the opening ceremony that the future of vital water resources "does not only rest on technological progress, but also and mostly on political commitments."

He called on all policy makers and international decision- makers to shoulder their responsibilities of the sustainable development of water.

A high-profile summit of heads of state and government is to be held Monday afternoon to appeal for concrete action of governments around the world to highlight the water resources and the role it plays in development and society.

The WWF, which meets every three years, was first launched by WWC in 1997 to raise awareness on water problems all over the world with four main purposes: raising the importance of water on the political agenda, supporting the discussions towards the solution of international water issues in the 21st century, formulating concrete proposals and generating political commitment.

(Xinhua News Agency March 16, 2009)