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In this issue N°146 (http://www.emwis.net/thematicdirs/eflash/flash146)
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HEADLINE

1- First UfM Annual Conference on Water Investment and Financing - Rome, Italy - 5th December 2019

In Brief

11- SUPROMED a New PRIMA project: innovative technologies and practices to adapt Med agriculture to climate change

12- VISCA: Discover a DSS combining climate, phenology and irrigation services and its added value to viticulturists

13- EdiCitNet: Edible Cities Network meeting and training of trainers for Follower Cities in Girona, Spain

14- HYDROUSA: Joining the Third Annual Meeting of SMILO, 14 - 18 October 2019, Porquerolles (France)  

15- Med-Greenhouses Webinars " Use of Innovative Geothermal Greenhouses"-18-19 November 2019

16- 11th World Assembly of the International Network of Basin Organizations (INBO)

17- Germany offers Jordan additional 1M euros to support water sector

18- Lebanon: National water sector strategy update 2019

19- Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon: AFD and UNWRA team up to provide essential services

20- Egypt: Former Egyptian minister calls for UN Security Council intervention into GERD crisis  

21- Tunisia: Launching workshop on the food security component of Tunisia's National Adaptation to Climate Change Plan

22- Tunisia: The French Development Agency (AFD) has launched a new modeling tool for the assessment of climate change in Tunisia 

23- Morocco elected president of the International Network of Basin Organizations

24- Algeria, Turkey sign MoU on water resources sector

25- Algeria: Within four years, 2.2 million shrubs have been planted, around 52 rivers

26- MedYWat: 2nd General Meeting and next action plans, 26-27 September 2019, Marseille, France

PUBLICATIONS

CALL FOR TENDERS AND PROPOSALS

CALL FOR PAPERS

TRAINING AND COURSES

EVENTS

CONTACT US / COMMENTS

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HEADLINE
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1- The Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) organize the First UfM Annual Conference on Water Investment and Financing,  in the framework of the Mediterranean Dialogues (MED), on 5th December 2019 in Rome (Italy). The UfM Annual Conference on Water Investment and Financing is a key component of the implementation plan for achieving the objectives of the UfM Financial Strategy for Water, as endorsed by the UfM Senior Officials’ Meeting in December 2018. The special topic of the first Annual Conference on Water Investment and Financing is “Public-Private Partnerships and Financial Sustainability of the Water Sector”. It will also include a Technical Segment (morning) and a High-Level Segment (afternoon). The High-Level Segment will be co-chaired by the UfM Secretary General Amb. Nasser Kamel and will include a Ministerial Panel. Further information on EMWIS website  

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IN BRIEF (Full news)
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2- Coming as part of a cooperation framework between the European Union and Egypt, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on 21 October launched the second edition of the Cairo Water Week, in the presence of the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel Aty, and the Deputy Director-General for EU Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Maciej Popowski. The high level panel also included Ambassador Nasser Kamel, the Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), Yousef Bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen the, the Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), representatives of the League of Arab States, and water sector experts from around the world. Egypt’s Ministry of Water resources organized the week to promote greater awareness of pressing water issues and find ways to address the most urgent challenges. Running from October 20 until October 24, the Cairo Water Week sees over 500 people coming in from all around the world. This provides ample opportunities to for water resource experts, scientists, academics and policy makers to discuss key plans and actions tackling water issues. Further information on EMWIS website

3- In Cairo, during the water week, the World Water Council represented by Loic Fauchon announced the creation of an International Observatory on Unconventional Water and Energy Resources. Loic Fauchon underlined that alternative and unconventional resources such as desalination of sea water and of salted aquifers, as well as wastewater reuse are efficient and renewable solutions, which will need to be applied worldwide in response to demographic pressure. Further information on EMWIS website

4- After 40 intense months of activities and different tests from the laboratory through piloting, SaltGae project comes to an end. The SaltGae project provides a simpler and economically sustainable solution to treat saline waters with high organic load, such as, for example, the effluents of the Food and Drink industry; using a combination of different technologies for the removal of pollutants and their recovery. Three demo sites have been built up in different locations (Israel, Italy and Slovenia) with different climatic conditions and origins for the wastewater to be treated, which allows confirming its versatility, thanks to SaltGae modular design. Further information on EMWIS website 

5- UNESCO organized from 28 to 31 October 2019 in Rabat, Morocco, an Open Water Symposium dedicated to African and Arab countries. During this event, several specialists  showcased open and/or free software dedicated to various aspects of water resources management, and  provided training sessions to selected participants (decision-makers, government representatives, students, professors and researchers, etc.). This Open Water Symposium is in line with the work of the Global Open Water Network, which aims at promoting Joint Research, Development and Education on Open Source software and Open data for Integrated Water Resources Management. Integrated modelling tools are becoming important solutions for water resources management, but their use has been limited due to costly licenses and the lack of data, especially in developing countries. With the Global Open Water Network, UNESCO aims at promoting open source software and open data by offering training (e-learning and workshops), and cloud services providing easy access to and easy use of computer infrastructures, data and open source software for water resources applications. Further information on EMWIS website

6- The Symposium on the use of non conventional waters to achieve food security is under the UN-FAO global framework addressing Water Scarcity in Agriculture – WASAG – in a changing climate. It aims to build momentum with a gathering of international leaders, financing institutions, policy-makers, researchers and the private sector. The objectives of this Symposium on is to analyse the state-of-the-art knowledge from current adopters as well as future technologies, including issues related to regional policies and life cycle and economic assessment of water, nutrient recycling, and energy technologies at scale. Ultimately, the Symposium will provide guidance for maximizing the safe use of non conventional water, especially for agriculture and food security. Further information on EMWIS website

7- On October 24, a workshop about “Water security and water diplomacy in the Middle East” took place in East Jerusalem. The workshop was organised by IPCRI and Arava Institute in the framework of EuroMeSCo ENI Project, co-funded by the European Commission and the IEMed. The workshop examined how water can become a source of cooperation in the region, instead of a source of conflict. During the workshop case studies of cooperation and cross border agreements have been presented. Furthermore, the risks and challenges of water-energy nexus were analysed. Finally, the de-securitization of water was studied as a crucial step toward building a solid water diplomacy. Further information on EMWIS website

8- Climate ​change is ​disrupting the ​rhythms of ​spring growing ​and river ​flooding across ​Europe, which ​could pose new ​problems for ​ biodiversity ​and food ​security in ​floodplains, ​scientists say. ​  New analysis ​of five decades ​of European ​flood and  ​temperature ​data, published ​in the ​journal Geophysical  ​Research ​Letters,  ​ demonstrates ​for the first ​time an  ​increasing ​overlap between ​the onset of ​spring and the ​highest points ​of seasonal ​flooding. ​ Researchers from the University of Glasgow in Scotland and Umeå University in Sweden ​performed a ​detailed ​analysis of ​data collected ​since the 1960s ​on flood peaks  ​and daily ​temperature in ​locations ​across Europe. ​ They found ​ that the thermal ​growing season ​– defined ​as periods ​where the ​temperature  ​rose consistently ​above 5°C, ​encouraging ​plants and ​trees to begin ​ to grow – ​has been ​consistently ​starting ​earlier in the ​year, bringing ​it closer to ​the periods ​where the ​highest river ​floods occur, ​which have ​begun to happen ​later in the ​year in Central ​ and Eastern ​Europe. Further information on EMWIS website

9- During the 19th edition of the EIB-Med conference “Investing in a resilient and inclusive future” held in Beirut on 30 September 2019, the European Investment Bank Vice-President Dario Scannapieco reviewed the EIB investment in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia for the period 2015-2018. The EIB financing has contributed to improve water and sanitation services for 5.8 million people, bring reliable and environment-friendly transport to 1.4 million people, and upgrade 1170 km of roads, while sustaining more than 300,000 jobs in the private sector. Through its Economic Resilience Initiative (ERI), and with support from the European Commission and EU member states, the EIB has scaled up its financing activities in the EU neighbourhood  (Mediterranean Partners and West Balkans) considerably. Since its launch in 2016, additional financing agreements were signed for 38 projects with total value of EUR 3.5 billion in the Mediterranean Partner Countries and Western Balkans. These financing agreements include projects in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco and Tunisia and cover investments in education, industry, water and sewerage, solid waste, energy, transport and SMEs sectors. Further information on EMWIS website

10-  The 10th meeting of review and monitoring groups of the Mediterranean Sea depollution (so-called Horizon 2020) initiative was organised by the EEA and UNEP-MAP in the framework of the ENI SEIS II South Support Mechanism (Implementation of the Shared Environmental Information System (SEIS) principles and practices in the ENP South region). The meeting was organised back to back with 1st Steering Committee meeting of the new Med Water and Environment Support action that will be implemented for the next 4 years. The meeting aimed to take stock and review progress achieved with the implementation of the programme of work of the H2020 Review and Monitoring group and in particular assess progress with the production of the Horizon 2020 indicators as well as the preparation of the 2nd Horizon 2020 indicator-based assessment. All presentations and documents, including countries presentation and assessment by sector (water, waste, industrial emissions) are available online.  Further information on EMWIS website

11- SUPROMED “Sustainable Production in water limited environments of Mediterranean agro-ecosystem” is a new PRIMA project that has started on October 1st. The project Kick-off meeting was held on 03-04 October 2019 at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) in Albacete, Spain. PRIMA foundation has participated at the meeting and explained the rules for scientific monitoring of SUPROMED. The main objective of SUPROMED is to enhance the economic and environmental sustainability of Mediterranean farming systems through a more efficient management of water, energy and fertilizers. The project will be validated by real life demonstrations on three sites in Spain, Lebanon and Tunisia. Further information here

12- The aim of VISCA DSS is to integrate climate services and agricultural models with vines growers’ management specifications in order to decide on short-term practices, to design medium- and long-term adaptation strategies to climate change. The tool is currently tested and validated in real-life environment at the 3 demonstration sites involved in the project: Spain (Codorniu), Italy (Mastroberardino) and Portugal (Symington). The main part of VISCA DSS user interface is an integrated dashboard which includes the farm details (location, a map, the parcels and reference dates) and the 3 main layers (phenology and sugar levels, irrigation and weather forecasts) in order to enable farmers to set smart strategies to take on climate change. Discover the architecture of the system and the added value of each layer of the DSS on VISCA website.

13- EdiCitNet project annual meeting was held in Girona, Spain from 22-25 October where the 1st feed-back from Front Runner Cities (after one year of operation) was provided. Back to back to the annual meeting, from 19 to 22 October, a training of trainers for Follower Cities was organized. Cities, SMEs, NGOs and academia took part at the meeting. Moreover, a technical visit to  Sant Feliu de Llobregat (a follower city) social gardens was held during the second day. An "EdiCitNet & friends" session was organised the last day of the meeting, when different European projects and local initiatives on natural based solutions were presented to foster synergy with EduCitNet project. further information on EdiCitNet website

14- On 14-18 October 2019, the Third Annual Meeting of SMILO sustainable islands network was held at the island of Porquerolles, France where the H2020-funded project HYDROUSA was represented by SEMIDE to foster the transferability of the project solutions in different water-stressed islands and regions. The event was joined by  about 90 representatives from small islands of SMILO network, institutional and financial partners, and field experts from all over the world who expressed their interest in the project and the importance of applying similar solutions in protected and green areas. HYDROUSA project setting up innovative solutions closing the water loops with regenerative business models for Mediterranean islands became a SMILO member of the association in early 2019. The solutions currently deployed in Mykonos, Tinos and Lesvos islands in Greece where introduced during the island pitch session. Many islands representatives from water scarce regions as well as from tropical regions expressed an high interest in potential Hydrousa replication. Further information on SMILO website

15- In the framework of Med-Greenhouses project of Interreg MED program 2014-2020 , SEMIDE is organizing 2 Webinars for the use of Innovative Geothermal Greenhouses on 18 & 19 November 2019 at 15:00 CET time. It is an opportunity to learn about new technologies applied in Greece for energy and water efficiency under greenhouses. The webinars will be in French. Click here for registration. The final conference and the final steering committee meeting of MED_Greenhouses will be held on 3&4 of December 2019, in Volos, at the University of Thessaly premises. On the 1st day   final steering committee meeting will take place in the afternoon, only with the participation of the project partners.  In the 2nd day a final Conference with participation of stakeholders from the regions involved in the project will be organized. Further information on Med_Greenhouses website

16- The 11th World Assembly of the International Network of Basin Organizations (INBO) took place in Marrakech from 30 September to 2 October and was jointly organised with the Marrakech International Summit on Water Security. The conference was opened by the head of government of the Kingdom of Morocco and attended by 400 participants representing 62 countries. The high level panel gathered 10 ministers in charge of water from Africa, EU and Middle-East. The event was concluded by the "declaration of Marrakech" for participative and innovative basin management. Further information on INBO website

17- Secretary General of the Jordan Ministry of Water and Irrigation Ali Subah and German Federal Institute of Geo-Science and Natural Resources (BGR) Vice President Christian Bonnemann signed the additional aid agreement to expand the work of existing water projects valued at 7.5 million euros. The grant will be divided between two projects. The first one is a Germany-funded 4-million euro project on assessing the Kingdom's water sources, Subah said, noting that the aid will be employed to develop water information systems to better assess environmental conditions and water sector actions.The grant will also cover a second 3.5 million-euro-supported project, which will continue till 2023 and aims to conduct studies on the costs of water extraction and the quality of water. Subah expressed gratitude for the German support to the Kingdom, especially in improving water supply and sanitation services in response to the urgent conditions which emerged from the Syrian influxes to the Kingdom, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. The one-million euro agreement was signed to mark the 60th anniversary of BGR-Water and Irrigation Ministry relations with the aim of improving water resources in refugee-hosting countries, he added. Bonnemann lauded the water sector's efforts, commending the "fruitful" cooperation between the ministry and the BGR, while expressing the institute's keenness on providing all support to address the Kingdom's water needs. Further information on EMWIS website

18- On the occasion of the Beirut Water Day September 27th, the Ministry of Energy and Water presented the various steps followed for the update of the national water sector strategy scheduled for the end of 2019. The Ministry is relying on a consortium of consultants to revise its strategy for water, sanitation and irrigation. An important component of this national strategy is governance and management. For each component of this strategy, specific attention is given to economic and social impacts. This strategy is in line with previous intervention policies but redefines national and regional priorities in the current context. The update of the strategy is divided into three phases: Data collection in coordination with the various sector stakeholders (June to September 2019);Data processing and analysis for the definition of better management and governance (in progress);Data processing and analysis for infrastructure prioritization (in progress). For infrastructure, a priority is given to the extension and improvement of water supply networks, the reduction of unpaid debts, the development of water infrastructures (including dams), the protection of the Lebanese coast and the Mediterranean, the protection of storage areas and protection of major surface and underground water resources. For the definition of a better management, a priority is given to the increase of the subscription and recovery rates, the restructuring of the tariffs, the update of the organization charts of the Ministry of Energy and Water and Regional Establishments water, the protection of water quality and its security, the revision of the water code and the publication of its application decrees and demand management with volumetric pricing. Further information on EMWIS website

19- In Lebanon, the influx of Syrian refugees in existing Palestinian camps and rising numbers of vulnerable people are adding to pressure on limited resources. Agencies are on hand however, to help provide essential services. Thanks to a financial support of €21 million from the French Development Agency (AFD) through the Peace & Resilience Minka Fund, the UNRWA will implement this new project aims to improve access to water and education for the next four years. The signing of the partnership agreement on October 17, 2019 was attended by a host of officials including: the Ambassador of France in Lebanon, Bruno Foucher; UNRWA Chief of Donor Relations, Marc Lassouaoui; the Director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon, Claudio Cordone; AFD Regional Director of the Middle East, Olivier Ray; the Ambassador of Palestine, Ashraf Dabbour, as well as representatives of the Lebanese army, Palestinian NGOs, Palestinian Popular Committees and pupils from UNRWA schools. Further information on EMWIS website

20- Former Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Nasr Eddin Allam called on Tuesday 15 October for the UN Security Council to stop the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and evaluate its structural safety as well as its water and environmental repercussions on Egypt and Sudan after the failure of negotiations with Ethiopia. Allam’s comments came during a conference on the GERD organized by the Egyptian Center for Strategic Studies. Further information on EMWIS website 

21- On October 8, in Tunis, in the presence of the French Development Agency (AFD) director, the Chief Cabinet of Ministry of Agriculture, Water and fishery (MARHP) and the representative of UN-FAO, the  workshop on the food security component of the National Plan for Adaptation to Climate Change of the Tunisia was launched. Funded by the AFD through the Adapt Action Facility and entrusted to the Suez-GRET-ACTERRA consortium, the study aims to assess the impact of Climate Change on the different dimensions of the country's food security and to define options and trajectories for adaptation in the medium and long terms. The first results will be published soon. Further information on EMWIS website

22- The French Development Agency (AFD)  launched a new modeling tool called "General Monetary and Multisectoral Macrodynamics for the Ecological Shift" (GEMMES), to assess climate change and its macroeconomic impact in Tunisia. A research collaboration agreement was signed on Tuesday 15 October 2019 between the Tunisian Institute of Competitiveness and Quantitative Studies to adapt this model to the characteristics of the Tunisian economy. The objective is to assess the macroeconomic impact of climate change and to report on the adaptation issues that this change poses for the agricultural sector by integrating a water cycle module. Further information on EMWIS website

23- Morocco was elected on October 1st as president of the International Network of Basin Organizations (INBO) for three years (2019-2022) during its 11th general assembly of the network. A ceremony to hand over the presidency was held between Moroccan Minister of Equipment, Logistics and Water Abdelkader Amara and Deputy Director General of the Mexican National Water Commission Jorge Eugenio Barrios Ordonez. Morocco is committed, during this mandate, to promote the implementation of an integrated water resources management policy, in the context of adaptation to the climate change. Further information on EMWIS website

24- Algeria and Turkey have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Water Resource sector on Wednesday 9 October in Algiers. The agreement was signed on the occasion of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's working visit to Algiers. Further information on EMWIS website

25- In Algeria, the principle of CSR (Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility) has a more ecological colour within the National Agency for Dams and Transfers (ANBT). The public agency has set up a reforestation plan along the banks of the rivers where it operates. The results of this operation were presented on October 1, 2019 in Algiers. It appears that between 2016 and September 2019, 2.2 million shrubs were planted along 52 watercourses, which supply dams and hill reservoirs in 32 localities across the country. Water Resources Minister Ali Hammam said that this stream protection operation has resulted in the development and reforestation of nearly 25,000 hectares of land. This operation is also expected to reduce soil erosion and reservoirs sedimentation. Further information on EMWIS website

26- On 26-27 September, the 2nd mid-term meeting of Mediterranean Youth for Water (MedYWat) network was held in Marseilles with the support of Cnter for Mediterranean Integration (CMI Marseilles). During the meeting, the activities of the network were presented such as academic exchange, collaboration on research calls, GIS tool, capacity building, communication and entrepreneurship. The coordination team also discussed the orientation and plan activities for the next year (cycle) including: World Water Day workshop ‘Water Heroes contest’ which is planned for March 2020, thematic work, memberships and working papers. Several action plans were agreed upon for the coming period with a special focus on climate change and entrepreneurship in the water sector. Further information on EMWIS website 

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NOMINATIONS and VACANCIES
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27- COST Action CA17133 is offering financial support to eligible applicants to carry out a Short Term Scientific Mission that will specifically contribute to the scientific objectives of this COST Action. STSMs facilitate scientists going to an  institution or laboratory in another country to foster collaboration, to learn a new technique or to take measurements using instruments and/or methods not available in their own institution/laboratory. Eligible are PhD students and  early Career Investigators (ECI, up to 8 years after award of a PhD). The deadline for this calls is 1 December 2019. Further information on EMWIS website

28- Fourth Mediterranean Water Heroes Contest on “Water and Climate Change”: Every year, World Water Day draws the world’s attention to key global water issues. World Water Day 2020 will focus on Water and Climate Change. Youth has an important role to play in working towards regional water security and increased water awareness. To amplify the voice of regional youth on this topic, the Center for Mediterranean Integration (CMI) is launching the fourth edition of its Mediterranean youth workshop on Water and Climate Change. Deadline for applying: 15 December 2019. Further information and access to the application on CMI website  

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PUBLICATIONS
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29-  On September 2019 UN-Water launches Policy Brief on Climate Change and Water: it provides short and informative analyses on the most pressing freshwater-related issues that draw upon the combined expertise of the United Nations system. These Briefs can be used for substantive discussions and provide policy recommendations for sustainable management of water and sanitation. Further information on EMWIS website

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CALL FOR TENDERS AND PROPOSALS
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31- Call for strategic projects of the Italy-Tunisia ENI Cross-border Cooperation Program 2014-2020: As part of the ENI's final goal of progress towards "an area of shared prosperity and good neighborliness" between the EU Member States and their neighbours, the Italy-Tunisia ENPI CBC Program 2014-2020 has set three Thematic Objectives: Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Entrepreneurship;Support for education, research, technological development and innovation; Environmental protection and adaptation to climate change. Closing date
17 December 2019. Further information on EMWIS website

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CALL FOR PAPERS
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32- III International Symposium on Soilless Culture and Hydroponics, 1-4 Nov 2020, Limassol/Lemesos, Cyprus. The Conference is a joint initiative of the Cyprus University of Technology (Cyprus), Department of Agricultural Sciences, Biotechnology & Food Science and the University of Turin (Italy), Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences. Abstract submission deadline    15/01/2020. Further information on EMWIS website

33- Call for papers for ecoSTP2020, 22-26 June 2020, Milano, Italy 5th International Conference on Ecotechnologies for Wastewater Treatment (ecoSTP2020) "Impacting the environment with innovation in wastewater treatment". Deadline:  10 December 2019. Further information on EMWIS website

34- 10th International Congress of the French Association for Political Economics (AFEP). The AFEP is a scientific association whose objective is to promote pluralism in the field of economics. The AFEP annual congress is an important moment for the association and for the community of economists. It allows the pluralism of theories, methods and objects to be brought to life. Beyond that, this approach encourages dialogue and inter disciplinarity within the humanities and the social sciences. For that reason, proposals from other disciplines than economics (economic sociology, management, anthropology, geography, planning, political sciences, history, philosophy, etc.) are welcome and encouraged.Topic of the 2020 Congress: “Resources”. Deadlines for thematic workshops (one page + references list + list of proposals for closed workshop) : 15th January 2020. Further information on EMWIS website

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TRAINING
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[28/10/2019 - 31/10/2019] The European Training Foundation: Skills and sustainable development goals in Arab countries. The Middle East and North Africa Public Administration Research (MENAPAR) network is organising a conference in Ifrane, Morocco, from 28-31 of October, to discuss how Arab countries are delivering on the SGDs and what is the role of skills development and government support in this process, among other aspects. More specifically, the event will focus on “Public Administration Research and South-South Cooperation for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in the Arab Region". Further information on EMWIS website

[07/11/2019 - 12/11/2019] cewas Middle East, LEWAP, the Lebanese Water Actors Platform, and AUB-FAFS are pleased to offer a 4,5-day training course in Sustainable Sanitation and Water Management (SSWM) with a specific focus on Faecal Sludge Management (FSM) solutions for practical implementation in Beirut, Lebanon.The Sustainable Sanitation and Water Management Training course is ideal for professionals working as: technical staff of municipalities and governmental offices, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society groups dealing with faecal sludge management issues, engineers and practitioners from the private sector, local and international service providers, university professors, students and researchers, members of local and international NGOs and entrepreneurs working in the water and sanitation sector.  Further information on EMWIS website
 

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Events
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