FAO Launches Initiative on Water Scarcity in the Near East

With the goal of supporting countries to build partnerships and streamline action on agriculture water management, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has launched a regional Initiative on Water Scarcity in the Near East.

The Initiative will work on a Regional Collaborative Strategy on sustainable agriculture water management for increasing the level of food security, and a Regional Partnership to support countries in the level of implementation of the collaborative strategy. The launching workshop took place in June 2013, and described the process of developing a regional review, followed by a series of National Assessments that will include, water accounting/auditing, the development of a water and food supply cost curve, and a knowledge gap analysis.

The Initiative builds on the FAO's publication, Coping with Water Scarcity: an Action Framework for Agriculture and Food Security. Recommendations will be presented for endorsement to the 32nd FAO Regional Conference for the Near East in February 2014. [Publication: Coping with Water Scarcity: an Action Framework for Agriculture and Food Security] [FAO Initiative Website] [Publication: Regional Initiative on Water Scarcity in the Near East Preliminary Regional Review and Gap Analysis]