The Joint Conference of AIWF and the Center for Mediterranean
Integration (CMI) was held in Amman, Jordan in 26-27 September 2018
on Women, Water & Youth: Perspectives from the MENA Region.
The conference was held in partnership with the CMI and benefited
tremendously from the invaluable endorsement, input and contributions
of Conference Partners, the Union of Arab Chambers, PepsiCo, PwC and
the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CIHEAM).
The two-day event
was an excellent opportunity for AIWF, CMI and all partnering
organisations and participants to bring into focus issues of shared
and urgent concern around sustainability, water scarcity and food
insecurity, women’s economic participation and leadership, the
refugee crisis, and the ongoing and indeed worsening challenge of
youth unemployment – all of these among the Arab world’s most
critical development challenges.
The discussion and
interaction that took place throughout both days between the
distinguished Opening Session Speakers, Panel Chairs, Guest Speakers
and Delegates, attending from across Jordan, the MENA Region, the UK,
EU and the United States, was deeply impactful and highly insightful.
AIWF was especially proud to bring world class specialists in the
areas of sustainability, water resource management, refugee support
and education, and women and youth empowerment together with
representatives of leading international organisations, NGOs,
academia, research institutes and the private sector.
Guest of Honour
Keynote speakers were Her Excellency Hala Bseiso Lattouf,
Minister of Social Development, Jordan; His Excellency Ali Subah,
Secretary General of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation in Jordan,
representing His Excellency Munir Owais, Minister of Water and
Irrigation; Professor Fadia Kiwan, Director General of the
Arab Women’s Organization; Blanca Moreno-Dodson, Manager of
the CMI; Dr Fares Braizat, Chairman NAMA Strategic
Intelligence Solutions; and Tessa Terpstra, MENA Regional
Envoy for Water and Energy Security for the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of the Netherlands.
In addition to
AIWF’s distinguished partners at the CMI and the World Bank, the
conference welcomed guest speakers representing The European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development; the International Labour
Organisation; the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations; the United Nations Development Programme; Economic and
Social Commission for Western Asia; the Mediterranean Agronomic
Institute of Bari; the Water Authority of Jordan; the Palestinian
Water Authority; and the Mediterranean Youth for Water Network, among
many others.
Sessions of the
conference were aligned with the core priority policy areas of AIWF
and the Center for Mediterranean Integration, and included:
Day 1
Women and water
governance in the MENA
Gender equity in
sustainable agriculture and food production
Building youth
capacity to address water scarcity challenges in the Arab water
sector through entrepreneurship and social enterprise
Building capacity
for women and youth in the Arab water sector through ‘smart’
technology and edtech innovation
Day 2
Impact of water
scarcity in the MENA refugee and internal displacement crisis
Reflections of
women leaders and young innovators addressing water scarcity,
sustainability, environmental and development challenges in the MENA
region
The conference
programme also included an evening reception featuring a very special
storytelling performance based on Algerian and Tunisian folklore,
titled Women and Water, performed by the talented winners of
the CMI Water Heroes Contest 2018 from Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.
The performance, organised by the German Corporation for
International Cooperation (GIZ), conveyed important messages on the
role of women in society in raising awareness of water scarcity in
the Maghreb and promoting their creativity and resilience in finding
viable solutions to water sustainability challenges.
Women, Water &
Youth was a positive demonstration of the truly international and
collaborative network that AIWF has built up since its inception in
2001 with the support of all distinguished Global Partners, and of
its steadfast focus on investing in women and youth in the Arab
region and internationally whilst bringing awareness to the region’s
most critical development and sustainability challenges that, if
unaddressed, will deeply reflect in the region’s future stability
and prosperity.
Addressing the nexus
between water scarcity and food insecurity, women’s economic
participation and the ongoing challenge of youth unemployment
underscores AIWF’s deep and abiding commitment to efforts to
realise the SDGs in the Arab world, and to the UN Global Compact
Principles, which as a Global NGO Member AIWF is proud to contribute
to and honour in all its programmes and initiatives.
AIWF now looks with
great optimism to carrying the Women, Water & Youth
initiative forward into the future and to working closely with all
stakeholders to promote and action the many valuable recommendations
that emerged from the discussions over the course of the two days. A
comprehensive conference report will be featured in the upcoming AIWF
Newsletter to be published in November 2018.
Conference Brochure
Chairman's Keynote Day 1
Chairman's Keynote Day 2
Press Release (English)
Press Release (Arabic)
Conference Programme (Arabic)
Conference Image Gallery