International Conference “Water and Climate Change in the MENA-Region. Adaption, Mitigation and Best Practices“

BayFOR is involved in this conference with a presentation on opportunities in European research funding for the MENA countries as well as a presentation on the FP7 research project CLIMB, in which 19 partners from nine countries investigate the impact of climate change on water catchment areas of the Mediterranean basin.

As a result of climate change with rising temperatures, decreasing rainfall and higher evapotranspiration, the MENA region (Middle East & North Africa), southern Africa, large parts of Asia, Australia, New Zealand and some countries in Latin America will be affected most severely by water scarcity.
Owing to the rising levels of greenhouse gases, the present global average increase in temperature stands at 0.8°C, and for Europe even at 1°C, annually. This is having a concrete impact on global water resources. By 2080, 20% of the population will be living in flood-prone areas. The proportion of the population suffering from water scarcity due to declining annual rainfall will rise from 1.6 billion (1995) to 5 billion in 2050. In Syria, for instance, the renewable water resources are expected to be halved by 2025. For the MENA region, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) forecasts a temperature rise that will be higher than the global average temperature rise of 6.4°C in 2100. The Arab Water Council (AWC) is assuming a drop in rainfall of up to 25% by 2060. Soil moisture will decrease by approx. 10% owing to severe evaporation. Agricultural productivity will fall correspondingly, and the food security of the population in the region will be at risk.

Main objectives of the conference will be:

• To discuss with international experts the impact of climate change on water resources in the Arab region
• To elaborate adaption and mitigation strategies on local and regional levels
• To analyse the role of IWRM (Integrated Water Resource Management) in the climate change aspects
• To assist the needs for capacity building activities to deal with the situation
• To discuss the possibilities of technologies and research application in the region
• To discuss the contribution and role of the civil society and the private sector

Further Information and the Conference Programme of this event.
The official conference documentation can be downloaded here.

Organisers:
giz – Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (www.giz.de/en)
German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (www.bmz.de/en)

Time: April 28th- 29th2011 - from 9:00 am till 6:00 pm

Venue: Maritim Hotel Berlin, Stauffenbergstraße 26, 10785 Berlin / Germany

Contact within BayFOR:
Dr. Thomas Ammerl
Head of Unit Environment & Energy
fon   +49 (0) 89 - 9901888 - 120
fax   +49 (0) 89 - 9901888 - 29
mail  ammerl@no-spam-pleasebayfor.org

Andrea Reiter
Scientific Research Assistant
fon   +49 (0) 89 - 9901888 - 121
fax   +49 (0) 89 - 9901888 - 29
mail  reiter@no-spam-pleasebayfor.org
web  www.bayfor.org