MedECC is pleased to have been invited to participate at the UNECE / WHO/Europe workshop focused on increasing climate resilience of water and sanitation sector in the Mediterranean Region. Hosted by Portugal and co-organized by UNECE alongside WHO/Europe within the Protocol on Water and Health framework, it has provided us with an excellent opportunity to share insights on our activities and report findings.
Margarita García-Vila from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, delivered a keynote speech presenting the main fndings of the First Mediterranean Assessment Report (MAR1). As a Coordinating Lead Author of the Special Report on the interlinkage between climate and the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) nexus, she also included updates based on the latest findings, shedding light on the significant potential of this approach for the region and the urgent need to implement it at all scales.
The objective of the workshop is to discuss common approaches to increase climate resilience of water and sanitation sector in the Mediterranean region by taking stock of main challenges and priorities of the countries of the region but also highlighting and exchanging on the existing good practices and solutions from both institutional/policy and technical perspectives. In particular, the workshop objectives are:
- Take stock of challenges and priorities and identify good practices in increasing resilience of water and sanitation sectors among Mediterranean countries;
- Respond to key challenges in the Mediterranean region by promoting setting of climate-sensitive targets and by building on other tools and activities implemented in the framework of the Protocol on Water and Health;
- Formulate future needs for the work under the Protocol on Water and Health to further support work on climate resilience and raise awareness of the Protocol among Mediterranean countries, including both Parties and other States.