Beirut, 27 July 2007 (UN Information Services)-- On 30-31 July 2007, Cairo will host a workshop organized by UN-ESCWA on “Evaluation and Adaptation of Existing Water Visions and Forecasts for Shared Aquifer Management in the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership Region (MEDA)”, which includes Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, and Palestine (Gaza and the West bank) at the Mena House Oberoi Hotel. Participants in the meeting, which will open at 10:00 am on Monday 30 July 2007, will be representatives of water management institutions in selected MEDA countries.

The “Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders in the ESCWA Region” (AIGLE) project aims at helping policymakers in Arab countries to build capacities, in order to narrow ICT human resources gaps, reduce barriers to ICT adoption and promote the application of ICT in accelerating socioeconomic development.

The twenty-third RCM meeting comes two years after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at a time when Arab countries are facing complex and pressing domestic and transboundary regional challenges—such as peace and security, unemployment, environmental stability, youth, water and international migration. Those challenges could, but should not, affect the United Nation’s ability to act as “one” to ensure that the basic human rights, economic and social justice of citizens are protected, a priority for all countries in the region.