ESCWA will participate in the East Mediterranean Maritime Conference that will be held on 19-20 June 2019 in Beirut. ESCWA’s participation will focus on the status of liberalization of maritime transport services in the Arab region.

Given the continuous political and social instability in the ESCWA region and the inadequate socio-economic development policies that have been implemented, Western Asia is in danger of becoming more vulnerable to poverty than ever before. Alleviating poverty can be achieved by encouraging entrepreneurial activities and establishing small and macro enterprises. This study focuses on the alleviation of poverty in the region through ICTs that can empower the poor and develop entrepreneurial activities. The study targets policymakers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and Governments.

A total of seventy-seven senior civil servants from the Iraqi Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works (MoMPW) have participated in 5 management trainings out of 6 held by UNESCWA in Beirut. These training modules that targeted five groups of experts from the Ministry (departments of municipalities, urban planning, water management, waste water management, and solid waste management) form a component of the UNDG Iraq Trust Fund financed UNDP project to build the capacity of the Iraqi MoMPW.