IFAD and the United Arab Emirates to enhance cooperation in the field of water scarcity and technology transfer
IFAD and the United Arab Emirates have pledged to enhance their cooperation
in tackling the impact of climate change and the degradation of the natural
resource base in the Near East and North Africa region (NENA) and beyond.
The pledge was made during talks between Mohammed Saeed Al Kindi, the United
Arab Emirates Minister for Environment and Water, and IFAD President Lennart
Båge at the Fund’s headquarters in Rome on 21 November 2007.
The Minister expressed his Government’s determination to increase
investments to counter the negative impact of drought and water scarcity,
the result of global warming stress in the country, the region and other
developing countries. IFAD’s knowledge and expertise are important assets
for developing effective mitigation and adaptation programmes in these
areas, he said. Moreover, the resources generated through his ministry and
channelled through the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) enable
affected countries to initiate programmes and projects responding to the
challenges posed by climate change. He invited IFAD to work closer with OFID
and other development organizations and financial institutions in developing
and implementing such interventions. President Båge underlined the
importance of strengthening cooperation between IFAD and the Ministry of
Environment and Water through greater interaction between officials and
experts of the two sides.
The President and Minister also discussed the progress made by a number of
IFAD-supported programmes under implementation by the Dubai-based
International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) and the International
Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA). These programmes
benefit the entire region including the United Arab Emirates. Among them is
a pioneering intervention to address water scarcity, the Programme for
Saving Freshwater Resources with Salt-Tolerant Forage Production in Marginal
Areas of the West Asia and North Africa Region. Launched in 2005, the
programme is introducing improved technologies for the use of saline water
in the mass cultivation of salt-tolerant forage crops and horticulture in
the region. Also discussed was the Integrated Pest Management Programme for
the Control of the Date Palm Red Weevil, Stem Borer and Grubs in the Near
East and South Asia, which has made a significant contribution to averting a
deadly threat to traditional Arab date production.
The President informed the Minister of the progress made in establishing an
IFAD regional representation aimed at fostering greater cooperation between
IFAD and members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The talks also
touched upon the special contributions provided by a number of IFAD Member
States, including GCC members, to sponsor conference facilities in IFAD’s
new headquarters building in Rome.
Water
to combat rural poverty
Contact information |
A. Abdouli
(email: a.abdouli@ifad.org) |
---|---|
News type | Inbrief |
File link |
http://www.ifad.org/newsletter/pn/4.htm |
Source of information | IFAD |
Keyword(s) | water scarcity, technology transfer |
Subject(s) | AGRICULTURE , MEASUREMENTS AND INSTRUMENTATION , METHTODOLOGY - STATISTICS - DECISION AID , RISKS AND CLIMATOLOGY |
Relation | http://www.semide.net/topics/Rural |
Geographical coverage | United Arab Emirates |
News date | 11/02/2008 |
Working language(s) | ENGLISH |