Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Fifth Arab Water Week 2019

3-5 March 2019. Amman, Jordan. The Arab Water Week (AWW) is a high-profile international and regional event promoted to attract decision makers, water management practitioners, and professional organizations internationally and in the Arab region.
"The conference has become a forum for experts, decision-makers and the private sector working in the water and sanitation sector. 19 international organizations and bodies participate in this conference to discuss and propose new ideas and solutions. Eng. Khaldoun Al-Khamshan, Secretary General of the Arab Association for Water Utilities (at the opening session - source: Royal News 03/03/19)
Extracts of the programme:

3 March 2019

Nature Based Solutions for Water Launch of the Arabic edition of the United Nations World Water Development Report 2018
Organizer: UNESCO World Water Assessment Programme
Co-organizer: Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Foundation, UNESCO Regional Bureau for Sciences for the Arab States, League of Arab States, IUCN, FAO and ESCWA
Speakers:
  • Setting the scene - HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan of Jordan (UNESCO Special Envoy for Science for Peace) Topic: Science for Water, Science for Peace 
  • Speech by H.E. Eng. Ali Sobh, Secretary General of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation Topic: National policies oriented towards Nature based solutions to improve livelihoods in Jordan. 
  • Mr. Kassim Al Jabri, Senior Manager for Project Design, Public Authority for Electricity and Water Oman 
  • Mr. Hammou Laamrani (Senior Expert, Water Energy Food Security and climate change nexus, Economic Sector, the League of Arab States) 
  • Keynote Presentation Prof Dr. Stefan Uhlenbrook (Coordinator, UNESCO World Water Assessment Programme) Topic: Main Findings and Policy Implications of the UN World Water Development Report 2018 Nature-based Solutions for Water 
Panel discussion 
  • Ms. Carol Chouchani Cherfane (Chief, Water Resources Section Sustainable Development Policies Division, ESCWA)
  • Dr. Ghaith Fariz (Director, UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science in the Arab States) 
  • Mr. Jean-Marc Faures (Regional Programme Coordinator for the Near East and North Africa, FAO) Mr. Ali Hayajneh (IUCN, Regional Water Coordinator) 
  • Representative of Jordan Valley Authority
Consultative Workshop: Development of a Regional Action Plan for Arab utilities on Water Scarcity
Organizer: Global WOPs Alliance GWOPA/UNHabitat and Arab Countries Water Utilities Association
  • Welcoming speech by Eng. Khaldon Khashman the secretary General of ACWU 
  • Water Operators’ Partnership – Introduction of GWOPA/UN-Habitat – Dr. Anne Bousquet 
  • Integrated Resources Management in Cities in MENA region- Pr. Akiça Bahri, INAT 
  • Open discussion on Regional capacity building programme for utilities – GWOPA’s initiative and roadmap – by Dr. Anne Bousquet, GWOPA and Eng. Samir Bensaid  
Knowledge Transfer for Utilities through Capacity Building
Organizer: USAID – Water Management Initiative (WMI) Project
  • Chairperson: Mohammad Said Al Hmaidi, WSRC 
  • Capacity Building Evaluation: How do we know what difference we are making, Maram Barqawi (Sr. Performance and MEL Specialist, WMI), Afaf Al-Sabbagh (Human Resources Manager, Yarmouk Water Company) and Nesreen Al Nabulsi (L and D Head-PHRi- HRCI, Miyahuna 
  • Social Marketing Approach to Achieve Behavior Change: Case Study, Maha Dergham (Behavior Change Specialist, WMI) 
  • Introducing integrated Enterprise Resource Planning systems and ISO in Jordan’s water utilities as an essential tool to improve performance, Tamer Al-Assa’d (WMI), Mahmoud Zoubi 

4 March 2019

Water Utilities Resilience organized by: the ICRC, UNICEF and the World Bank
Organizer: The ICRC, UNICEF and The World Bank
  • Chairperson: Mr. Dominick de Waal, The Word Bank 
  • Introductory presentation “Becoming Resilience”, Mr. Iyad Rammal, The World Bank 
  • Mr. Michael Telhami, ICRC 
  • Mr. Omar El-Hattab, UNICEF 
  • Mr. Iyad Rammal, the World Bank 
  • Eng. Tawfeeq Al Sharjabi, Deputy Minister of MWE 
Energy for Water: Contribution by the Sub-Cluster Energy for Water and Carbon Reduction – GIZ Jordan Water Portfolio “Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy” 
Organizer: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ Jordan)
  • Chairperson: Louy Qoaider, GIZ 
  • ISO 50001 based Energy Management System for Jordanian Water Sector – IEE, Louy Qoaider (GIZ) and Nouf Al heyari (GIZ) 
  • Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) – The Road Map for decarbonising water utilities and the Results of Madaba GHG Analyses, Soeren Rued, GIZ WaCCliM Global Project and Salam Al Momany (GIZ) 
  • Optimizing Kufranja Wastewater Treatment Plant – Export Initiative Supporting Environmental Technologies, Mohammad AlMalla (GIZ) and Dherar Al Qudah (Yarmouk Water Company) 
  • Small Scale Solar Desalination Approach – REW Wael Elayyan (WAJ) and Haneen Sadeh (GIZ) 
Sharing Ideas and Research Findings for Solving Water Scarcity
Organizer: IHE Delft Partnership Programme for Global Development (The Netherlands) 
  • Chairperson: Naser Almanaseer, Al Balqa Applied University and the Middle East for IHE Delft Partnership Program for Water and Development Topic: 
  • Introduction to Debate Session: Rationale, Structure, and Expected Outcome(s) 
  • Working roundtables on postulates of scalability, transferability and integration for projects and programmes on Water Scarcity in the MENA region.
  • findings, comments and feedback on postulates. 
  • Development of key advice and focus areas for water scarcity in MENA region. 
  • Discussion on key advice and focus areas for integrated strategy towards water scarcity in the MENA region
Resilience in Water and Wastewater Systems: Reflections from the Middle East and North Africa 
Organizers: Chemonics and CDMSmith
  • Chairperson: Basil Mahayni, Chemonics 
  • Scott Short, Chemonics International 
  • Dr. Ahmed Gaber, Chemonics Egypt 
  • John Crippen, P.E., CDM Smith 
Water Security for All: Science Diplomacy for Sustainable Development of Water Resources in the Arab Region and Neighboring Countries) 
Organizer: UNESCO Regional Bureau for Sciences
  • Chairperson: Bisher Imam, UNESCO The Water Security for All: Science Diplomacy for Sustainable Development of Water Resources in the Arab Region and Neighboring Countries” initiative
  • Dr. Ghaith Fariz, Director, UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science for the Arab States, Cairo, Egypt 
  • Dr. Francois Muenger, Director of the Geneva Water Hub, Geneva, Switzerland 
  • Dr. Ghaith Fariz, Director, UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science for the Arab States 
  • Dr. Hammou Laamrani, Integrated Senior Expert, Department of Environment, Housing and Water Resources, League of Arab States, Egypt. 
  • Dr. Munther Haddadin, Former Director, Jordan Valley Authority, Jordan 
  • Ms. Beesan Shonnar, Director, Policies and Technical Support, Water Authority, Palestine.

5 March 2019

Climate Change organized by: ACWUA
Organizer: ACWUA
  • Chairperson: Rifaat Abdel Wahaab, HCWW 
  • Early Warning and Flood Management System, Alexandria, Mohamed Hassan Khalil, Holding Company of Water and Wastewater (HCWW), Egypt 
  • Regional Initiative for the Assessment of Climate Change Impacts on Water, Carol Chouchani Cherfane, Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UN-ESCWA), Lebanon 
  • Benefits of Organic Farming Practices on Crop Water Use Efficiency in Arid Zones, Khaled Negm, Institute for Technology and Resources Management in the Tropics and Subtropics TH Koeln Germany, German Jordanian University, Germany 
Managing Water Scarcity: WEAP Modeling Scenarios for Water Resources Planning for Jordan organized by: GIZ Jordan
Managing Water Scarcity Organizer: ACWUA
  • Dealing with water scarcity in the semi-arid Chtouka region in south Morocco, Mohamed AMGHAR, HYDRAULIC BASIN AGENCY OF SOUSS MASSA, Morocco 
  • Numerical Groundwater Flow Model of Jordan, Mark Gropius, GWRM Project (MWI, BGR), Jordan 
  • Crowd-sourcing water security from within the Arab utility: a fast, affordable, clean new approach to resilience, James Workman, AquaShares Inc., United States 
  • Sustainable Management of Water Scarcity in the Arid Mountains: A Case-Study of Al Jabal Al Akhdar, Sultanate of Oman, Mohammed Saif Al-Kalbani, Omani
  • Improving Water Management in Morocco through a System of Rewards, Susan Leal, Harvard University, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, United States 
  • Environment-friendly formulation for the control of corrosion and deposition of scale in water systems, Maisa Salah El-Din Ismail Ahmed, Alexanderia Water Company, Egypt 
  • Pressure-Dependent Modeling: An Effective Tool for Water Equality, Pressure and Leakage Management in An Intermittent Supply System, Meifa Chen, CDM Smith, United States 
Background
  • The Arab Water Week (AWW) was firstly launched in Amman, Jordan in December 2010, and organized by the Arab Countries Water Utilities Association (ACWUA) in partnership with Jordanian Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) and League of Arab States- Arab Ministerial Water Council (LAS- AMWC).
  • AWW is a unique international event in the Arab region, which tackles water management issues through establishing innovative partnerships and platforms of collaborative work on water and wastewater issues in the region. 
  • The importance of this event lies in providing a platform for greater coordination among the existing network of key stakeholders active in the water sector in the region.
  • AWW does not only provide an opportunity to enhance communication flows, synergies and the sharing of successful experiences and best practices, but also, facilitates the creation of new partnerships that complement and maximize the impact of on-going work in this sector for the benefit of all countries in the region.
ICARDA Video interview with: Dr. Khaldon Khashman, Secretary General, Arab Countries Water Utilities Association.
  • The Arab Countries Water Utilities Association (ACWUA) is a global centre of excellence that partners with water supply and wastewater utilities in the Arab Countries on building capacities within the utilities and on instituting best practices in order for the utilities to achieve their objectives. 
  • Since its official launching in 2009 in Amman, ACWUA has expanded its membership network to reach to more than 100 water utility members from 18 Arab countries, in addition to private sector companies, NGO’s and academic institutions and individual members. 
Dr. Khaldon Khashman answers following questions:
  • What is the Fifth Arab Water Week 2019 about?
  • Will international agricultural research centers participate?
  • Will there be a session on dry and arid areas?
  • Are farmers" organisations invited?

 Upcoming events:
16-17 March 2019. Cairo, Egypt. 5th General Assembly of the Arab Water Council
The General Assembly is a tri-annual event that assembles all AWC members to influence the strategic orientation of the organization by voting policies and programs. It is also an opportunity for AWC members to elect the representatives of the Board of Governors for the new term. Simultaneous with the 5th GA, AWC will be organizing several Technical Sessions to discuss current regional initiatives/ projects prepared in partnership with regional development partners, aiming to create a common Arab vision with multi-faceted dimensions, while defining the mechanisms of action for achievements of the SDGs, in compliance with the overall common Arab goals and countries’ integral aspirations. 

Extract of the programme:
  • Panel Session on: Arab State of the Water and Sustainable Development Goals Indicators - Moderator: Prof. Khaled M. AbuZeid, Director, Technical Programs - AWC
  • Technical Session on “The Use of Advanced Technology and Remote Sensing Techniques in Water Resources - Management for Sustainable Agriculture” – (Arab Water Council & World Bank)
  • Main results of the IHP project on groundwater and arid zones and program activities to achieve SDG-6 (Dr. Alice Aureli, UNESCO)
  • The Arab Water Council Program for Expanding the Use of Non-Conventional Water Resources, (Arab Water Council & Partners) ( Moderator: Prof. Safwat Abdel –Dayem, AWC Advisor)

19-22 March 2019. Praia, Cabo Verde. 1st WASAG International Forum on Water Scarcity in Agriculture

Coinciding with the celebrations of the World Water Day 2019 which this year adopts the theme of ‘Leaving no one behind’, the forum aims at identifying concrete – practical, innovative and collaborative- solutions to address water scarcity in agriculture in a changing climate. With a focus on Cabo Verde, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and West African countries, the forum is expected to illustrate how water scarcity in agriculture can be addressed and turned into an opportunity for sustainable development, food and nutrition security.

31 March - 4 April 2019. Cairo. FAO Land and Water Days. 
The Near East and North Africa Land and Water Days are being convened on 31 March-4 April 2019 in Cairo, to review the progress made in addressing water scarcity in the region, foster exchange of knowledge and experience among countries and partners and chart the way forward taking into account the lessons learned, the new challenges to and opportunities for sustainable development. The event will focus on the NENA region but will link to the global perspective through the participation of countries and experts from other regions (Asia, Africa and Latin America) to provide for inter-regional insights and knowledge sharing.

The LWDs will consist of two segments: The technical and high level expert meeting from 31 March-3 April and the Ministerial Meeting on 4 April led by the League of Arab States.

Related: The Malabo Montpellier Panel’s report: Smart Irrigation Strategies 5 February 2019. Cairo. 1st Egyptian-German Water Partnership-Day

Video interview with  Dr. Khaldon Khashman, Secretary General, Arab Countries Water Utilities Association
Published on 31 Dec 2014

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