Water Ministry, FAO sign agreement on MENA water security

AMMAN — The Ministry of Water and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) on Sunday signed an agreement to launch the Water Scarcity in the Middle East and North Africa initiative.

Minister of Water and Irrigation Raed Abu Saud, who signed the agreement with FAO Representative in Jordan Nabil Assaf, discussed water challenges facing Jordan, expressing the ministry's commitment to ensuring the sustainability of available resources through strategic solutions, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The initiative provides an "important" opportunity to improve water resource management, enhance knowledge, develop capacity, raise awareness, share expertise, and promote sustainable water use in agriculture, the minister noted.

According to FAO, the "Water Scarcity Initiative" serves as a platform for regional and national partners dedicated to improving cooperation on water and food issues. 

The initiative includes 17 activities, with Jordan participating in 15 of them, and has a total value of $31.5 million.

The Kingdom has made "substantial strides" in addressing water scarcity, successfully decreasing agricultural water consumption to 51 per cent.