EMWIS Flash n°132 - January/February 2017

EMWIS Flash - January / February 2017 Euro-Mediterranean Information System on the know-how in the Water Sector For further information: www.emwis.net & check our page at facebook Flash produced by the EMWIS Technical Unit- OIEAU, CEDEX, CHJ, DG Agua  Mediterranean Water Knowledge Platform  Geo-Catalogue / UfM-Water  WEAM4i / PAWA / NWRM / MED-3R/ R-KNOW  / SAID / OpIRIS / SWOS / LIFE-ANADRY/demEAUmed/4PRIMA/ Mediterranean sustainable cities

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In this issue N°132 (http://www.emwis.net/thematicdirs/eflash/flash132)
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HEADLINE

1-Towards a Mediterranean Water Agenda

In Brief 

2- World Water Day 2017 on Waste water

3- Global Water and National Security: Why the Time Is Now

4- Sanitation data for all: EC wins the International Excellence Award 2017 of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC)

5- 11th General Assembly of the Mediterranean Network of Basin Organisations

6- Water, or rather the lack of it, is expected to become more of a problem for countries in southern Europe in the years ahead

7- Cooperation on Water, Energy, Food between higher education institutions and public and private organizations in the Mediterranean Countries

8- 5+5 Water Strategy in the Western Mediterranean: Action Plan Kick-off Meeting 30-31 March

9- Mediterranean Plan: What solutions for the Mediterranean?
10- Life-ANADRY: Construction and transport of the prototype ANADRY
11- 4PRIMA Stakeholder Fora: Egypt, Siena and Malta
12- WEF nexus in practice: WEAM4i solutions for water and energy efficiency in agriculture
13- demEAUmed: safe water reuse in Mediterranean tourist facilities 
14- SWOS builds capacities for wetland monitoring using satellites in Western Balkan
15- Algeria:  6 New Dams in 2017

16- France: A new type of river management is coming! GEMAPI law video presentation

17- France: Human right to water and sanitation, Parliament debates

18- Palestinians are searching for different ways to feed their families: urban roof agriculture

19- Lebanon:  6th Beirut Water Week

20- Lebanon: Improving agriculture production in Bekaa valley

21- Lebanon, Litani River: A Sorry, State of the Affairs

22- Egypt: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development funds 42 water projects in Egypt

23- Egypt: Egyptian invention cuts rice irrigation water by half

24- Greece: Greek Scientist on the Path to Develop Solution to Low Rainfall

25- Malta: Addressing Water Scarcity-A common challenge

26- Syria: Lack of water access in Damascus is creating risks for children, UN warns

27- Tunisia: A regional plan to ensure a summer 2017 without water problems in Kasserine

28- Tunisia: Samir Taieb, 200 million dinars will be invested in 2017-2018 to avoid water shortage

29- Morocco: What is the national program for water saving in irrigation?

30- Morocco is protecting its water memory

31- Tomatoes grown in Australian desert from sunshine and seawater

NOMINATIONS & VACANCIES

PUBLICATIONS

CALL FOR TENDERS AND PROPOSALS

CALL FOR PAPERS

TRAINING AND COURSES

EVENTS
CONTACT US / COMMENTS

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HEADLINE
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1- Following the proposal of UfM Water Expert Group meeting in Brussels last December to prepare UfM common water agenda to be endorsed at the Ministerial level, UfM member countries together with the European Commission and observer members prepared a draft declaration. This document was presented at an ad-hoc Senior Officials Meeting of the UfM in Brussels at the end of January 2017. Member countries are now commenting and amending the draft declaration in view of the potential adoption at the Ministerial meeting planned on 27 April in Malta. The declaration should focus on a strategic guidance to set-up a Union for the Mediterranean Water Agenda and a mechanism to operationalize the strategic guidance based on the WEG and existing structures. Further information on EMWIS website

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IN BRIEF (Full news)
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2- This year, the World Water Day celebrations will focus on Waste Water. Climate change, population growth and economic development demand for sustainable solutions to make the world future-proof. Waste water is perceived as a valuable resource in the circular economy and its safe management is an efficient investment for future well-being of humans and ecosystems. Improving waste water management means improvement on all 6 targets of the Sustainable Development Goal on Water. On March 22, 2017, all around the world, events will celebrate the World Water Day. You can find online background material on waste water in several languages and identify an event located near to you or declare your own event. For example, the Center for Mediterranean Integration in Marseilles (France) is organizing a Mediterranean Water Heroes Youth Contest on “Youth Innovating with Wastewater for a Sustainable Mediterranean”. Also, on the occasion of the world water day, the documentary « Le Sourcier des Temps Modernes » by Sylvie Boulloud and Nathalie Plicot will be presented.  It is talking about Alain Gachet the “ sourcier francais - frensh water diviner” who has discovered a new water divining technique that could alleviate drought all over the world. Further information on EMWIS website

3- According to the recent US National Intelligence Council report, Global Trends: Paradox of Progress, “more than 30 countries – nearly half of them in the Middle East – will experience extremely high water stress by 2035, increasing economic, social, and political tensions.” The tensions caused by unsafe or unavailable water can drive people to desperation and even violence when exacerbated by other factors of social and political strife. Given the dire straits of many of the world’s key water sources in regions important to U.S. strategic interests, water security and hydro-diplomacy must become more central to American foreign policy decision-making. Further information on EMWIS website

4- The Directorate-General for the Environment of the European Commission is the winner of the 2017 Geospatial World Award in the category "geospatial policy implementation award” for its open source platform "Structured Implementation and Information Framework" on the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (UWWTD SIIF) developed by the International Office for Water (France) in partnership with the Environment Agency of Austria (UBA). The “UWWTD SIIF“ is a generic tool that presents a country's sanitation data through charts, maps, tables, statistics, with a strong geospatial component, incorporating many automatic calculations and sorting. It facilitates access to information for all users. Launched in 2009, the "Geospatial World Awards" is an international award attributed by the OGC acknowledging innovations and best practices in the field of geographic information around the world.  Further information on EMWIS website

5- The 11th General Assembly of the Mediterranean Network of Basin Organisations (MENBO) will take place 22-24 March 2017 in Malta, at the invitation of the Maltese authorities, and coinciding with the Maltese Presidency of the Council of the European Union.  The Assembly will be organised around three thematic blocks on: Water and adaptation to climate change; Water and agriculture in the Mediterranean; Non-conventional water resources: reuse and desalination. Further information on EMWIS website

6- Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain have been relying increasingly on desalinated water at great cost for their public water supply. Resources are squeezed nearly dry in these countries to meet water demand for tourism and irrigated agriculture in areas where the ground water has been over-exploited. Most of the southern Member States already have their own legislative frameworks for reuse of water reclaimed from sewage, each with a different approach. Yet lack of harmonisation on quality standards for reused water could pose trade barriers for agricultural goods from areas irrigated with water reclaimed from waste water. A request has been made by these countries to the European Commission for an instrument that will set out standards for reused water.  For these reasons the Commission is working on legislative or other instruments to boost water reuse when it is cost-efficient and safe for health and the environment. Further information on EMWIS website

7- Successful cooperation between higher education and the business sector bring substantial benefits to higher education institutions, their academics and students, as well as to companies, their staff, and to society as a whole. The 5toi_4EWAS project on Energy, Water and Agriculture in the South Mediterranean Countries has launched a survey on cooperation between University, higher education institutions and public and private organizations located in the Mediterranean Partner Countries area (open till 6 March 2017). The European Commission could use the results to improve its policy for the EU-MED area. Further information on EMWIS website

8- After the great success of having its Action Plan signed and endorsed by the Ministers during the COP 22 held in Marrakech last November, the 5+5 group for the Water Strategy in the Western Mediterranean (WSWM) is meeting in Valencia (Spain) for the Kick-off Meeting of the Action Plan on 30-31 March. An additional working meeting will be organised in 2017 in order to begin the practical implementation of the Action Plan and to define the Work Plan for 2018.  For this Kick-off meeting, participants will bring proposals of events/initiatives/projects that fit into the Action Plan.  One of the technical topics will focus on ensuring urban water supply in scarce environments.  Further information on EMWIS website

9- On February 23rd,the French Ministry of Environment organised the international seminar "What solutions for the Mediterranean?" in Paris. The event gathered 200 representatives from Mediterranean countries. It was chaired by Ms Ségolène Royal, Minister Environment, Energy and Sea and in charge of International Relations on Climate and President of COP21. This meeting was a follow-up of the « Solutions for the Mediterranean » initiative launched in 2016 by Ségolène Royal. It was organised around 5 Mobilisation round-tables:1- coordination of scientific networks; 2- Developing protected marine areas; 3- Marine transport; 4- Fight against land-based pollution; 5- Sustainable islands. The Euromed network of cities, represented by its General Secretary B. Massabo contributed to the roundtable on "land-based pollution" by proposing to Mediterranean Sustainable Cities platform launch last November in Nice, to support the exchange of practices on urban sanitation, the development of collaborative and capacity building projects.
EMWIS highlighted the ongoing effort made in the framework of the Mediterranean Water Knowledge Platform (UfM initiative) for integrating a component on Urban Waste Water Treatment in the National Water Information Systems under development in South Mediterranean countries. Such developments are ongoing in Tunisia with the SINEAU and a sanitation component under definition with the National Sanitation Office (ONAS). Further information on EMWIS website

10- The LIFE-ANADRY project has completed the construction and transport of the prototype Dry Anaerobic Digestion system to Alguazas WWTP (Murcia, Spain - 60,000 inhabitants -3,500 m3/d) for the treatment of its sludge. The prototype is now operational on site. It consists of anaerobic reactor of 20 m3, agitation system composed of a rigid central axis with paddles, a membrane gasometer, gas analyzer online and a boiler for the use of generated biogas with a capacity of treating up to 3 tonnes/day. The system will be run under dry or high-solids conditions, with inflow sludge concentration ranging from 15-20% Total Solids (TS), and it will be operating at mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures. Moreover, the influence of the hydraulic retention time (HRT)  on process performance will be studied in terms of sludge stabilization, pathogens elimination and biogas production.  For further information, please checkLife-ANADRY website

11- On 14 February 2017 Cristina Russo, Director for International Cooperation at the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission, and Fathallah Sijilmassi, UfM Secretary General, discussed Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in the field of research and innovation at the UfM headquarters in Barcelona. The discussions centered on ways to promote regional stability, human development and integration through Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in research and innovation. They addressed in particular major regional initiatives including PRIMA (Partnership in Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area) Initiative on sustainable food systems and water resources. The 4PRIMA Coordination and Support Action Project  is creating the bases and  developping a set of activities aimed at supporting the establishment of a long-term, well-structured and integrated partnership for research and innovation (R&I) on food systems and water resources, among countries from both sides of the Mediterranean Sea (“PRIMA Initiative”). In the framework of 4Prima project 3 Stakeholders’ Fora will be held in Egypt, Siena and Malta respectively in April May and June.  Those 3 events aim mainly at building a community of stakeholders from relevant sectors (Agriculture, Environment, Water, Scientific, Technology) to create PRIMA Stakeholder forum and consultation. During the 4PRIMA Stakeholder Fora parallel sessions will be organized, with specific discussions held within each group of stakeholders as well as interactive sessions in which stakeholders from different sectors, disciplines and countries will work together.  Further information on 4Prima website

12- The final workshop of WEAM4i (Water & Energy Advanced Management for Irrigation) project will take place in Barcelona on 6 April 2017. During the event, the results, benefits and opportunities offered by WEAM4i project will be presented, demonstrated and discussed: products and services such as the WEAM4i irrigation smart tool, as well as successful case studies from Portugal, Spain and Germany. A session on the Water-Energy-Food nexus will allow exchanges on the policy perspectives from the local point of view (irrigators and farmers). Business to business (B2B) roundtables will gather the end-users with the producers of WEAM4i smart irrigation tools. Registration and preliminary programme are available online. WEAM4i is an innovative EU project aiming to improve the efficiency of water use and reduce the costs of power systems in irrigation. Further information on WEAM4i website

13- Organised by Fraunhofer, demEAUmed (Closing the water cycle in Mediterranean tourist facilities) 6th general meeting was held on January 18-19th, 2017 to discuss the progress and plan final activities as the project is ending in June. The advisory board member, Günter langergraber from the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, provided positive feed-back and recommendations to the partners. Prior to the meeting a half-day 'Lego serious play workshop' was organised in order to boost further discussions on mature enough technologies for exploitation and potential strategical partnerships between partners after the end of the project.  Results on the treatment and reuse of greywater were provided while the final demonstration for wastewater is still on-going. Furthermore, preliminary results of the environmental and socio-economic analysis of demEAUmed water treatment technologies were also presented (link). A tool to help hotel owners or engineering companies in designing efficient water and waste water management solutions was also presented. The final conference and the policy-makers workshop will take place on May 18th, 2017 in Barcelona, including demonstration and support for assessing hotel water management improvement and visit to the demonstration hotel in Lloret del Mar to see the solutions working on site. For further information, please check demEAUmed website

14- Wetlands administrators from West-Balkan countries were trained by two SWOS partners (Tour du Valat and ETC-UMA) on how to use the Satellites Wetland Observation Services and associate tools and methodologies developed by the project. A total number of 10 users from 4 countries gathered in Podgorica (Montenegro) at the shore of Lake Skadar, the largest lake in the region and one of Europe’s most important wetlands. The users included representatives from the Albanian Ministry of Environment and its Agency for Nature Protection, as well of the Regional Administration of Protected Areas Shkodër, the Public Enterprise for National Parks in Montenegro, the Nature Park of Lonjsko Polje (Croatia) and the Institute for Nature Conservation of the Vojvodina province (Serbia). The training  provided an overview of the SWOS services and products for wetland mapping as well as practical use of SWOS’s GEOclassifier tool for preparing Land Use Land Cover and Surface Water Dynamics maps from satellite images. Further information on SWOS website andnewsletter.

15- The Algerian Minister of water and environment Abdelkader Ouali announced on January 18th 2017 that six new dams will be in operation in 2017, including the Mellague dam in the  wilaya of Tébessa. Mr. Ouali said that these infrastructures will be added to the national dams infrastructure, that count today 75 dams whereas only 31 were operational in 1999. Five additional ones are planned by the end of 2019. Further information on EMWIS website

16- The Rhone Mediterranean Corsica water Agency in South East of France produced a short animation film on river management (GEMAPI) to present the key concepts and actions related to the French GEMAPI law related to the management of aquatic environments and flood prevention by municipalities or groups of municipalities (GEMAPI: (GEstion des Milieux Aquatiques et de Prévention des Inondations). Watch the video "A new time of river management is coming" here (English version), also available in French . Further information on EMWIS website

17- Adopted on 14 June 2016 by the French National Assembly, the draft law 685 on the effective implementation of the human right to drinking water and sanitation was also approved on 15 February 2017 by the Committee on Sustainable Development of the Senate. But the draft law was finally validated at the plenary session on 22 February 2017 as an agreement was not reached and a new debate will be necessary in the future. Further information on EMWIS website

18- At sunset on a warm January day in Gaza City, Said Salim Abu Nasser's three grandsons crouched on the ground, using bricks to crush chalk into powder for calcium to help grow vegetables in water. Abu Nasser, 53, has grown 3,500 kilogrammes of organic produce without any soil, transforming his rooftop and concrete lot into an organic oasis. He grows a dozen different types of vegetables and herbs for his family, including eight children and eight grandchildren. Using hydroponic techniques, Abu Nasser can grow twice as many crops than with conventional techniques, and he saves 90 percent more water by recycling nutrient-dense water. His broccoli, tomatoes, lettuce and cauliflower float on polystyrene squares with holes cut into them, while their roots absorb nutrients from the water. "For six months, I don't need to change the water," Abu Nasser said. When the power is out, his solar panels produce enough energy, even in winter, for his pipes to pump oxygen into the water for his crops. The water, containing excrement from fish swimming in a barrel, is used as a vital nutrient to grow produce. Further information on EMWIS website

19- The 6th Beirut Water Week organised the Lebanese Ministry of Energy and Water will take place from 27 to 29 March, 2017 at the Hôtel Le Royal Dbayé in Beirut. The theme of the conference will be after COP22, what gouvernance for the Water Energy Food Nexus. Various sessions and rountables will tackle: Water Energy Food security, vulnerability of infrastructures, Private sector investments, financial instruments for PPP, role of international organisations in transnational cooperation, technological tools and water information systems for climate change adaptation. Further information on EMWIS website

20- The Bekaa Valley (East side of Lebanon) is experiencing a shortage of drinking water and sanitary facilities. Local agriculture is also suffering from drought conditions. In these challenging circumstances, however, it is of crucial importance that the region be able to achieve good harvests, provide employment and grow its economy. The situation is even more difficult with more than 1.5 million Syrian refugees welcomed in the country. Wageningen University and its Lebanese and Dutch partners have launched in February 2017 a two-year project with the aim of improving the provision of drinking water, purifying waste water, increasing water availability and boosting farmers’ production by encouraging better, more economical water use. Further information on EMWIS website

21- The Litani River, the largest river in Lebanon, faces a multitude of environmental problems. Due to decades of neglect and mismanagement, the river has become heavily polluted. The main contributors to the degradation of Litani River are industrial pollution from factories and slaughterhouse, untreated sewage, chemicals from agriculture runoffs and disposal of municipal waste. The pollution has reached such a level where it is obvious to the human eye. Pollution reduction projects are urgently needed to reduce industrial and agricultural pollution, to treat urban waste water and to manage solid waste, including in refugees camps. Further information on EMWIS website

22-  The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has invested in 42 drinking and tap water projects since 2013 in Egypt. “The bank is focused on a programme that improves the capacity of water usage and achieves economic, social, and environmental benefits,” said Hana Khaled, from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The bank is currently cooperating with the Holding Company for Drinking Water and Sanitation to develop a mobile application that allows the user to know where drinking water is cut and when it will be restored. The bank also contributes to raising awareness. According to the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation the yearly water shortage is about 20bn cubic meters. For that reason, the ministry seeks to optimise water use, by reusing every cubic metre of water at least three times before it becomes sewage. Further information on EMWIS website

23- Egyptian inventor of water-conserving machine wins first place in international contest. The machine cuts by half the amount of water needed for rice cultivation. It could benefit Egypt, whose share of Nile water is threatened by the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Further information on EMWIS website

24-  As the march of climate change continues and the specter of drought looms large for Mediterranean countries like Greece, the problem of collecting water in areas of low rainfall will become increasingly acute. A lone Greek scientist has been quietly working for years to develop a solution, with materials that will help water-collection in increasingly arid regions of the world. The final stage in this effort, which seeks to design commercial applications using his research, is to be funded with 150,000 euros from the European Research Council (ERC). He produced a material able to capture moisture from air. Further information on EMWIS website

25- WSStp highlights water innovation in Malta boosted by water scarcity. Dr Konrad Mizzi , Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Malta said that "Being located in the centre of the Mediterranean and with a prevailing semi-arid climate, the scarcity of water resources has always been a limiting factor for the socio-economic development of the Maltese islands. Throughout the years Malta has, however, managed to turn the challenge of water unavailability into an opportunity to develop new technologies and management approaches." Further information on EMWIS website

26- 6 January 2017 – Following two weeks with no access to running water for millions of people in and around Damascus due to ongoing fighting near the Syrian capital, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) raised the alarm over a potential increase in diarrheal diseases among children. While private distributors are providing water, UNICEF explained its worry about quality and price of those supplies during the regular press briefing. Residents have been able to access water for up to two hours every three or four days through water rationing. But many have turned to private distributors, where neither price nor quality are regulated, prompting concerns about the risk of water-borne diseases among children. In many areas, families are paying up to $12 for only 1,000 litres of water. Further information on EMWIS website

27- The Tunisian State Secretary for Hydraulic Resources and Fisheries, Abdallah Rebhi, told the press that a regional plan has been prepared to solve the problems of the water user associations in the governorate of Kasserine for next summer. In addition, these solutions are integrated into the new Water Code, which will soon be presented to the Assembly of Citizens Representatives. Rebhi said that his Ministry will work to accelerate the implementation of scheduled projects for the water  sector in the region. The SONEDE (National drinking water utility) explained  that 7 deep wells will be drilled, including 3 in  the city of Kasserine and 4 in the delegations of Tala, Foussana, and Sbiba, as well as in the locality of Bouzguem in Kasserine south. SONEDE is also planning to build a water desalination plant in the town of Doghra (Kasserine south) and building two reservoirs in the cities of Methnania (1500 m3) and  of Zouhour (5000 m3). Today, according to the regional agricultural commissioner in Kasserine, Mohamed Missaoui, the amount of inhabitants served by drinking water in the two urban and rural areas, is 247000 but only 11% are served by the SONEDE network. Further information on EMWIS website

28-  Samir Taïeb, Tunisian Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, announced on Tuesday February 7th  that 200 million dinars will be invested between 2017 and 2018 (100 million dinars in 2017 and 100 million dinars in 2018)  to face water shortage. Considered as a priority of the national unity government, this crisis will be resolved by the establishment of 40 mobile desalination units for seawater  and by drilling 30 wells to cope with peak  summer demand. On the other hand, the minister announced that, already, all the governorates have an emergency plan to deal with the lack of water and avoid wastage.  Further information on EMWIS website

29- The extension of areas equipped with localized irrigation techniques is encouraged by the public authorities, thanks to a proactive policy which is reflected in the "Green Morocco Plan" (PMV) in the framework of the National Program for Water Saving in Irrigation (PNEEI), which aims to convert ​550,000 hectares of irrigated land into localized irrigation. Several mechanisms have been adopted by the PMV in order to achieve the objectives set out in the PNEEI, notably through the modernization of public irrigation networks with a progressive adoption of localized irrigation. Financial aid ranging from 80 to 100% of the cost of equipment are provided to farmers, in addition to strengthening the capacities of agricultural executives and farmers. Further information on EMWIS website

30-  The museum Mohammed VI of water's civilization has been inaugurated recently by the crown prince Moulay El Hassan. This museum is dedicated to water resources management. Completed on the eve of the COP22, this museum located in the palm grove at the entrance of Marrakech required more than 2 years of work.The new museum structure aims to introduce the Moroccan genius of water management. Further information on EMWIS website

31- Using salt water and sunlight, Sundrop Farms is able to produce 15 million kilograms of tomatoes a year from the Australian desert. Here is how it works: A solar tower standing 115 metres high with 23000 mirrors pointed at it provides all the power the farm requires, for heating and cooling. It also powers a desalination plant, which converts seawater into freshwater to keep the plants irrigated. Further information on EMWIS website

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NOMINATIONS and VACANCIES
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32- PhD Programme Integrated Management of Water, Soil and Waste, Dresden/Germany: UNU-FLORES and Technische Universität Dresden are now accepting applications from graduates in engineering, social sciences, and natural sciences for their joint PhD Programme in Integrated Management of Water, Soil and Waste. Further information on EMWIS website

33- The Committee on World Food Security (CFS) is inviting short summaries of experiences and policy approaches in addressing food security and nutrition in the context of urbanization and rural transformation. The deadline for submissions is 15 March 2017. All submissions will be shared through the FSN Forum www.fao.org/fsnforum/ and made available on the CFS website. Further information on EMWIS website

34- Vacancy, Senior Programme Officer - Project Manager : The Global Water Partnership - Mediterranean (GWP-Med) is seeking to hire a Senior Programme Officer - Project Manager in the framework of the Project “Promoting the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources in Southeastern Europe, through the use of Nexus approach” supported by the Austrian Development Agency. Interested candidates can apply  not later than 3 March 2017. Further information on EMWIS website

35- Vancancy, Senior Programme Officer – NWSAS Nexus Project Manager: The Global Water Partnership - Mediterranean (GWP-Med) is seeking to hire a Senior Programme Officer – NWSAS Nexus Project Manager in the framework of the Project “Making Water Cooperation Happen in the Mediterranean” supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. Interested candidates can apply not later than 19 March 2017. Further information on EMWIS website

 36- The Observatory of the Sahara and the Sahel "OSS" launches a call for application for the realization of 2 regional studies (West Africa) as part of the project " Improving the Sahelian populations’ resilience to environmental changes- REPSAHEL". Further information on EMWIS website

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PUBLICATIONS
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37- In the framework of demEaumed project a mini report that analyses the global water recycling and reuse challenges and links them with particular conditions of the tourist sector and the Mediterranean region was published on January 2017. Further information on demEAUmed website

38- "Reconciling resource uses in transboundary basins: assessment of the water-food-energy-ecosystems nexus in the Sava River Basin": this technical report published in January 2017 by UNECE  contains results of the nexus assessment of the Sava River Basin shared by Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia that was carried out from 2014 to 2016 in the framework of the UNECE Water Convention’s Programme of Work. The methodology employed was developed specifically for assessing the nexus in transboundary basins. Further information on EMWIS website

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CALL FOR TENDERS AND PROPOSALS 
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39- Calls for projects in support of decentralized cooperation: The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs supports decentralized cooperation between French and foreign local authorities, on the basis of geographical and thematic priorities of cooperation. The program supports the projects from local authorities as well as national networks, consultation and regional coordination structures in the framework of calls for annual and triennial projects. Specific funds are also allocated in support of decentralized cooperation in particular in Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon and Palestine. Further information on EMWIS website

40- H2020 call for project: SMEInst-07-2016-2017: Stimulating the innovation potential of SMEs for sustainable and competitive agriculture, forestry, agri-food and bio-based sectors. Particular attention should be given to :
1- Advancing innovations in Integrated Pest Management; 2- Resource-efficient eco-innovative food production and processing; 3- Reduction of food losses and waste on farm and along the value-chain; 4- Creating added value from waste and by-products generated on farm and along the value-chain - Further information on EMWIS website

41- H2020 call for project: LCE-11-2017 Near-to-market solutions for reducing the water consumption of CSP (Concentrated Solar Power) Plants. Specific Challenge: In spite of the improvements in recent years, water and cost-competitiveness remain a crucial barriers to the deployment of CSP plants especially in arid areas. The challenge is to drastically reduce water consumption as well as costs thereby contributing to achieving the SET-Plan targets for CSP. Further information on EMWIS website

42- H2020 call for project: SMEInst-11-2016-2017: Boosting the potential of small businesses in the areas of climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials.This topic is targeted at all types of eco-innovative SMEs in all areas addressing the climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials challenge – including but not restricted to the 2016-2017 strategic priorities of systemic eco-innovation and circular economy, nature-based solutions, climate services, sustainable supply of raw materials, harnessing GEOSS Earth observation data, cultural heritage for sustainable growth, and water – focusing on SMEs showing a strong ambition to develop, grow and internationalise. Further information on EMWIS website

43- Call for projects from the Rhone-Mediterranean and Corsica Water Agency: manage water and sanitation skills at the right level. The water agency is calling for projects to support local authorities on all matters related to the transfer of competences and structuring water and sanitation services in the context of implementation of the law "NOTRe". With a budget of 10 million euros, it is opened until 29 June 2018. The projects will be financed up to 80%. Further information on EMWIS website

44- Programme ENI CBC Med, a call for standard projects is expected in Spring 2017, with different priorities including: Support sustainable initiatives aimed at finding innovative and technological solutions to increase water efficiency and encourage use of non-conventional water supply; Reduce municipal waste generation and promote source-separated collection and the optimal exploitation of its organic component; Incorporate the Ecosystem-Based management approach to ICZM into local development planning, through the improvement of intra-territorial coordination among different stakeholders. Further information on EMWIS website

45- The Delegation for the External Action of Local Authorities (DAECT) of the MAEDI, has published a general call for projects for 2017, dedicated to French local authorities and their associations. This call aims to finance decentralized cooperation projects implemented with foreign local authorities. Particular attention will be paid to sustainable urban development, particularly for  the following themes: - Buildings and transport / territorial planning; - Development Education; - Implementation of integrated management policies; - Water and sanitation; - Coastal risks and management of alerts; - Waste management and valorisation, biodiversity, circular economy; - Food security: territorialized food systems, agro-ecological practices, Milan Pact, 4p000; - Support to the mobilization of sub-national, national and international climate finance. Further information on EMWIS website

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TRAINING
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[2017/05/23 - 2017/05/23] OIEau Technical Day :  New French GEMAPI law: overview and roles for its implementation. Organized by the international office for water the technical day will address in a practical way: - The regulatory context; - The players in the GEMAPI implementation; - The superposition of the small and the large water cycle; - Implementation of the transfer of competence. Further information on EMWIS website

[2017/03/20 - 2017/03/20] Operation of a wastewater treatment plant organized by OIEau: the objective of the training is to provide a general knowledge on all purifying techniques. Further information on EMWIS website

[2017/01/29 - 2017] Two Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) on Water Supply and Sanitation Policy in Developing Countries lunched by the Alliance Manchester Business School at the University of Manchester (UK). Both MOOCs will run in an  ‘on demand session’ format. Sessions for this course are automatically scheduled  every 4 weeks    on    Monday with    an    enrollment    period of  5 days. The    first    session    started  on    29/01/2017. Further information on EMWIS website

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EVENTS (Full Agenda) 
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PROJECTS (Projects database) 
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WATER PROJECTS DATABASE (MEDA-NIPs, MEDA-Water, LIFE, SWIM, SMAP, INCO-MED, FP4-FP7, H2020, UfM, ENPI South, ENPI CBC Med, INTERREG, etc.)

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CONTACT US
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- The EMWIS Flash gives you regular and quality information on the water sector in the Euro-Mediterranean area. The main headlines are: Institutions, Documentation, Training, Research and Development, Data Administration. You will also find updates on: international events, relevant web sites, the Euro-Med Water programme of the European Commission, and much more ... 
- You can view this Flash and also the previous issues in our website.
- This Flash is also yours, please give us your comments and information to improve it Contact the EMWIS Technical Unit.
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