Beirut-Stockholm, 13 September 2019-Between 25 and 29 August, ESCWA, represented by the Director of the Sustainable Development Policies Division, Ms. Roula Majdalani, participated in the World Water Week 2019 in Stockholm, which was organized by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) on the theme “Water for society – including all.”
In a session co-organized with the World Bank on “MENA focus: Technical-level water cooperation in the Mashreq region,” Majdalani presented RICCAR outcomes. She emphasized that these outcomes provided a science base for the generation of knowledge and capacity-building material on the impact of climate change on water resources and its associated socioeconomic vulnerabilities.
Majdalani also facilitated a working group on climate change modelling in the Arab region.
ESCWA also contributed to the showcase event of the World Water Development Report 2019 titled “Leaving No One Behind” (LNOB). Majdalani moderated a Q&A session regarding the meaning of LNOB in a context of displacement, from the perspective of young people, and in the various world regions.
ESCWA voiced the concerns of Arab countries regarding their challenges in accessing the Green Climate Fund (GCF) during a meeting organized by the GCF to introduce a new initiative for the formulation of guidelines for GCF project development in the water sector. “Arab countries have had the lowest access to the Fund compared with other regions of the world,” Majdalani stressed.
Finally, ESCWA is participating in the organization of a side event on “Climate-resilient water management approaches” planned on the sidelines of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP25) meetings in Santiago, Chile, next December. The World Water Week 2019 provided a platform for ESCWA and partners to discuss contribution details.
For more information:
Ms Rania Harb, Public Information Assistant, +961-70-008-879; harb1@un.org
