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Project title
BLUEGREEN MED-CS - NETWORKING CIVIL SOCIETY IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION
Funding Agency Period: (2014-2017)
Mediterranean Partner Countries: Algeria, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia.
Other: Albania
Objectives of the action
The project’s overall goal is to strengthen existing - and promote new – cooperation and leveraging
opportunities among Euro-Mediterranean civil society organisations (CSOs) dedicated to water and
environment, thereby maximising their contribution to sustainable development in the region. In particular,
the project aims to: Reinforce the participation and cooperation of southern CSOs in various areas, including
wetlands protection and sustainable management, integrated water resources management, education for
sustainable development and awareness, as well as marine litter, through an integrated and interactive
capacity building programme that brings together technical and organisational expertise and tools and
capitalises on existing practices and projects. Foster dialogue between civil society, public authorities and other
relevant stakeholders by strengthening existing participation mechanisms, or promoting ones.
Results and impacts
The technical, organisational and institutional capacities of at least 120 Mediterranean environmental CSOs
have been strengthened to provide goods and services to society more efficiently and sustainably. CSOs’
capacity for designing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating high-potential, innovative projects have been
reinforced. The target CSOs will actively participate in, and contribute to, national policy dialogues and regional
processes on relevant environment and water issues.
Project title
MEDITERRANEAN KNOWLEDGE PLATFORM ON WATER (Med Water Knowledge)
Funding Agency UfM project
Partners EU: Spain Monaco
Mediterranean Partner Countries: Jordan • Lebanon • Morocco • Tunisia
Objectives of the action
This project aims to provide a common basis for the development of National Water Information Systems
(NWIS) in four pilot countries from the Southern Mediterranean region. Furthermore, the project will deliver
an assessment of water resources management and use (drafting of a White Paper) by collecting and exploiting
data in the pilot countries and two additional European countries.
The project will define which data, information and expertise are needed to plan integrated water resources
management (IWRM). It will also reinforce water regulation, ensuring data availability and ownership at local
and national levels. The information provided by the project will allow for an evaluation of best practices, joint
management of transboundary resources and follow-up on regional and sub-regional projects/policies in the
Mediterranean region, on a voluntary basis.
Results and impacts
Implementation of an initial phase of National Water Information Systems (NWIS) in Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan
and Lebanon, based on harmonised regional guidelines and international standards;Provision of training
courses for the development and management of shared water information systems; Launching of a regional
platform to exchange experiences and best practices on the process of developing national information
systems and white papers on water; Preparation of automated data flows for international reporting agreed
in the Mediterranean region.
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Biodiversity
The Mediterranean Basin Biodiversity Hotspot is the second largest hotspot in the world. The rich
biodiversity of the Mediterranean terrestrial and marine flora and fauna, including many
endemic
Project title
Sustainable Water Use for Securing Food Production in Dry Areas of the Mediterranean Region -
Acronym (SWUP-Med)
Funding Agency EC Fp7
Period: (2009-2013)
Partners
EU: Italy, Portugal, United Kingdom, and Denmark
Mediterranean Partner Countries: Turkey, Morocco, Egypt, Syria
Oher: Australia
Objectives of the action
The project’s strategic objective focused on improving food crop production in the Mediterranean
region. This was undertaken by introducing climate-proof varieties in crop rotations of wheat, grain
legumes and new crops (potentially high value food cash crops), in a rain-fed system with
supplemental deficit irrigation using marginal-quality water and harvested rainwater.
This has accelerated the adoption of improved agricultural practices supporting small farmers’
livelihood and income levels
.
Results and impacts
Results of introducing the agronomic measures of the SWUP-MED project, i.e. improved rotation,
cropping and irrigation systems including use of low quality water, and new varieties and crops,
showed significantly positive effects on overall agricultural productivity, soil quality and resilience.
The project results will help farmers and extension workers in making smart decisions, selecting
appropriate food legumes and new crops for developing climate-proof cropping systems for food
security and market potential, and to choose best strategies for water use. Finally, new market
channels were recommended for the new crops different strategies for water harvesting have been
analysed, and the distribution of the water to the crops should be the most advanced principles of
irrigation, that is drip lines placed on the surface or even better as subsurface drip lines, with water
applied as supplemental irrigation in the form of deficit irrigation, or alternate root zone drying
technique.
Deficit irrigation may save 30% water with same yield as full irrigation. Different qualities of water may
be used, that is treated wastewater and saline water, provided a consistent monitoring of salinity
build-up in soils under supplemental, deficit, and full irrigation systems is performed. Faba bean was
most salt tolerant legume, but much less tolerant than amaranth ad quinoa, tolerating up to 30 dS m-
1 with no yield penalty.
It was demonstrated that farmers are able to cultivate new crops like quinoa in the semi-arid
Mediterranean region, and that it is possible to introduce quinoa and amaranth to the domestic
markets in the Mediterranean region. Institutional- and market barriers should be defined in each
country.
SALTMED model has been undergoing several developments. It can provide information on crop
growth and relative yield for future climatic scenarios so this approach represents a useful decision
system for sustainable agronomic management.
Project title
Monitoring and Evaluation of Water in North Africa (MEWINA)
Funding Agency Centre for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE)
Period: (2011-2014)
Partners
Mediterranean Partner Countries: Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia
Objectives of the action
With a budget of about 1.9
million Euros, the project (2011-2014) is divided into 4 components including:
PHASE I: Assessment of existing M&E Systems
PHASE II: Standardizing and harmonizing National and N-AMCOW M&E systems and reporting
PHASE III: Preparing a North African M&E Action Plan and Program
PHASE IV:
Project Management
The project is expected to establish national units for Water Monitoring & Evaluation within the main ministry
in-charge of water at the national level in the 6 North African countries (Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania,
Morocco, Tunisia) With North Africa being the first sub-region in Africa to start the M&E Water program under
AMCOW, the expected harmonized Water M&E system at the North African sub-regional level, will eventually
be replicated and implemented at the Pan-African level.
Results and impacts
Objectives and results of the action Implemented by CEDARE under the umbrella of the African Ministers’ Council
on Water (AMCOW), and funded by the African Water Facility (AWF), the Monitoring and Evaluation for Water
in North Africa (MEWINA) Project is a pioneer project that embodied homogenous efforts among
North African
countries, in the area of Water Sector M&E, capacity building and more.
MEWINA main aim is to monitor and evaluate the MDGs concerning the water sectors especially the water
supply and sanitation coverage. And to enhance the integrated water resources management through the
development of water sector data and information management systems including indicators .
Three years of collaborative efforts between CEDARE, and the water ministries in Algeria, Egypt, Libya,
Mauritania & Tunisia have resulted in launching five National Baseline State of the Water Reports (SOW) for the
five countries, and a Regional North Africa State of the Water report for the first time in Africa.
A special session at the 3rd Arab Water Forum was dedicated to the launching of SOW reports on December 9th,
2014, in Cairo, Egypt. As the project’s key output, the reports represent an all-new methodology setting the
groundwork for a consistent M&E mechanism for the water sector.
They included about 170 indicators categorized under 15 groups of indicators; including Water & Availability,
Water & Uses, Water & Land Use Changes, Water & Services, Water & Energy, Water & Quality, Water & Health,
Water & Climate, Water & Population, Water & Socio-Economics, Water & Ecosystems, Water & Finance, Water
& Governance, Water & Trade, and Water & International Relations.
Having
reached that end, too many ultimate goals are still ahead.
Capacity building and vertical and horizontal expansion of the project’s mandate is still promising in MEWINA
Phase II, eventually targeting countries’ improved efficiency, to assess and report on the State of the Water at
the national and the transboundary basin levels periodically, and to be integrated at the regional and Pan-African
levels.