they act as a forum for aligning interests and timing across ministries and public agencies a prominent example of a highlevel structure acting as coordinating body is conagua the national water commission in mexico box and many lac countries have also set up national water agencies including brazil cuba the dominican republic guatemala panama and peru box it follows previous waterrelated administrations such as the direction for water land and colonization the nation irrigation commission the ministry of water resources and the ministry of agriculture and water resources this decentralised agency of semarnat is the highest institution for water resource management in mexico including water policy water rights planning irrigation and drainage development water supply and sanitation and emergency and disaster management with an emphasis on flooding the amended national water law nwl restructured conagua s key functions through the transfer of responsibilities from the central level to subnational entities