Support to the Regional Collaboration Platform of the Water Scarcity Initiative to Increase Water Productivity - TCP/RAB/3602

The Near East and North Africa (NENA) region is among the areas worst affected by chronic water shortages and, in coming decades, is likely to be faced by the most severe intensification of water scarcity in history. Per capita fresh water availability has decreased by two-thirds over the last forty years and is forecast to decrease by a further 50 percent by 2050. Demographic growth, a tendency to increase food self-sufficiency to reduce vulnerability to imports, price volatility, expanding urbanization, energy demands and overall socio-economic development, exacerbated by the negative impact of climate change and the degradation of water quality, are the main causes behind this intensification of scarcity. Agriculture, which consumes over 85 percent of available fresh water resources in the region, will most likely have to absorb the bulk of this shock, with major consequences for food security and the rural economy. Countries in the region thus need to plan their water resources allocation strategically and to review their water policies to ensure that the best use is made of the water available. To this end, it is essential to quantify the productivity of water use in agriculture. In response to the growing needs of member countries and to help them cope with this enormous challenge, FAO and partners launched in 2013 the Regional Water Scarcity Initiative in the Near East and North Africa. The first output of the Initiative was a Regional Collaborative Strategy (RCS) on Sustainable Agricultural Water Management. This represents a framework to assist countries

Bibliographic Details

Format:	Project biblioteca
Language:	English
Published:	FAO ; 2020
Online Access:	https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/CA9084EN http://www.fao.org/3/ca9084en/ca9084en.pdf
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