The First Regional Meeting of the 5th World Water Forum

WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES AND PRACTICES IN ARID AND  SEMI-ARID REGIONS

The First Regional Meeting of the 5th World Water Forum took place in Amman on 26-27 February 2008, with the participation of approximately 150 persons from 19 countries. Jordanian, Turkish, Israeli and Kuwaiti Ministers were present at the meeting hosted by the Jordanian Ministry of Water and Irrigation and the Turkish Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Presentations were made by the Arab Water Council, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Palestine, Tunisia, the League of Arab States, World Water Council and Turkey.

The roundtable meetings among the countries of this arid and semi-arid region, sharing similar problems, were very fruitful and gave informative results about the water management strategies. Many interesting ideas emerged and comments were made during the roundtable discussions.

The two-day meeting provided an opportunity for different stakeholders, organizations and institutions to work together and discuss problems that are related to six main topics. The main topics of discussion and the outcomes of the theme’s roundtable meeting are as follows;

Theme 1: Adaptation of Water Management to the Climate Change
Theme 2: Financing
Theme 3: Availability of Water Resources 
Theme 4: Institutional Arrangements, Optimizing Public and Private Roles in Water Services
Theme 5: Urban Water and Sanitation
Theme 6: Modern Irrigation Techniques

At the end of the meeting, the working groups produced a Final Document. For the Final Document, please click here.