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Project Stakeholder Participatory Sustainable Water Management at Farm Level Cooperation with Jordan and Palestine

- The irrigation system in Jordan and Palestine is strongly impaired due to a lack of socio-economic, cultural and technological means. Some of the greatest problems are: the inefficient and ineffective water management of national water resources, outdated and partly leaking water networks, bad water quality, inefficient irrigation networks, limited quantities of water per household and a lack of general awareness regarding  the optimal use of limited water resources.

- Apart from the well-coordinated technical improvement of water quality and irrigation management, it is vital to create a fundamental and systematic improvement of relations between the individual interest groups at municipal and local level in Jordan and Palestine.

- Because of the conflicting interests of irrigation suppliers and farmers, external intervention is necessary in order to adjust these relations and introduce an institutionalised communication process.

- Another problem in current relations between interest groups is the condition of women in agriculture. Although women carry out most of the agricultural work, they are not included in decisions and educational facilities. This is partly due to traditional roles and the lack of technical training. Local NGOs have set up initiatives that aim to support and give value to the women, but it is not part of national policy or in any way seen as a priority.

Project number n/a
Subject(s) WATER DEMAND , no translation available , DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION : COMMON PROCESSES OF PURIFICATION AND TREATMENT , no translation available
Acronym MEDWA
Geographical coverage Austria, Spain, Palestine, Jordan
Budget (in €) 5493825
Programme MEDA-WATER
Web site http://www.medwa.org/
Objectives - The MEDWA project connects two approachesone socio-economic and the other technical – for the solution of the multilayered problems of water management in Jordan. The aim is the complete and sustainable improvement of the regional development.


-The project starts with the definition and systematic inclusion of local/regional and national interest groups. It then seeks to establish a know-how and technology base for further implementation in technical and non-technical training, as well as to demonstrate and pilot activities and equipment (irrigation networks, collective wastewater treatment, construction of common and individual reservoirs and cisterns, rehabilitation of production wells, etc.).


- Through access to relevant national and international know-how, the knowledge base of interest groups and final consumers is extended by means of professional training in 8 different sections of sustainable water resource management. This basis of  knowledge and awareness is at the heart of the project's activities.

Results

Examples of efficient water supply management activities:

  • pilot projects for the salvage of sewage
  • irrigation networks
  • demonstration of non-conventional irrigation technologies
  • enlargement of capacities of reservoirs, cisterns and wells
  • rehabilitation of wells and distributing systems
  • establishment of back gardens, as a way to implicate final consumers
  • demonstration of biological agriculture
  • demonstration of waste water use methods in households.

- In parallel, organisational structures are created (associations, cooperations, forums) with institutionalised strategic interfaces. These structures shall not only act as committees for the exchange of opinions, experiences or tested training models on a micro-economic level, but will also strengthen the capacities of interest groups and municipalities. Women should play a decisive role in these organisations.

- The marriage of technical “hardware” and socio-economic “software” is a direct solution to the complexity of the problem and aims at sustainable improvement of regional development.

Period [18/04/2004 - 01/05/2007]

Partners

  • HWA – Hilfswerk
    Coordinator acts as project coordinator
    Type
    Country Austria
    Web site http://www.hilfswerk-austria.at/
    Contact Mme burkhart heidi,
    Position: General coordinator of the project
    Phone/fax: +431 40 57 500-30, +431 40 57 500-60
    Email: burkhart@austria.hilfswerk.at
  • Palestinian agricultural relief committies
    Type
    Country Palestine
    Web site http://www.parc.ps
    Contact Mme Thizy Delphine,
    Position:
    Phone/fax: +970 (02) 2963840, +970 (02)2963850
    Email: dolphine@pal-arc.org
  • The Jordanian Hashemite Fund For Human Development (JOHUD)
    Coordinator acts as project coordinator
    Type
    Country Jordan
    Web site http://www.johud.org.jo
    Contact ,
    Position:
    Phone/fax: (962-6) 5825241, (962-6) 5827350
    Email: exrd@nic.net.jo
  • La Fundación Promoción Social de la Cultura (FPSC)
    Type
    Country Spain
    Web site http://www.fundacionfpsc.org/
    Contact ,
    Position:
    Phone/fax: + 34 91 344 01 76, + 34 91 344 03 66
    Email: fpsc@fundacionfpsc.org

Funding sources

  • European Commission
    Source EC MEDA-WATER
    Programme MEDA-WATER
    Type
    Funding rate 80
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