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ESCWA Water Development Report 6 The Water, Energy and Food Security Nexus in the Arab Region

Symbol: 
E/ESCWA/SDPD/2015/2
Issued in: 
2015



The Arab countries have much to gain from considering the linkages between water, energy and food security in their pursuit of sustainable development, given the stressors, constraints and strong interdependencies that characterize the relationships between these three sectors in the region. The nexus analytical framework can be applied at various scales of analysis and can accommodate consideration of the varying natural resources endowments and different production and consumption patterns that exist among Arab countries. It can facilitate the examination of the complex challenges that stymie water, energy and food security in the Arab region, such as shared water resources management, decision-making related to the energy mix and energy efficiency in Arab countries, and national efforts to achieve food security in face of water scarcity, land degradation and development objectives.

This sixth issue of the ESCWA Water Development Report presents an analytical framework and a series of case studies for understanding the water-energy-food security nexus in the Arab region. The analytical framework considers the linkages that affect the achievement of water, energy and food security through the lens of sustainable development and the achievement of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, with a view to mitigating climate change and ensuring access to food, water and sustainable energy for all in the context of a human-rights approach.