Prof.Suhil Kiwan
The Director of the Water Diplomacy center
Water and the environment represent one of the biggest challenges facing global and local communities. ِAs we know, water is a vital component for growth, prosperity, and civilization, so it is not surprising that these transboundary basins host more than half of the world's population, with countries sharing about 310 rivers and lakes and 592 surfaces of groundwater.
The Middle East and North Africa region are one of the most water-scarce regions in the world, where the demand for water exceeds the natural amount of available water by about 20 percent due to population growth and the deterioration of the impact of climate change on water resources. With this contrast, it may increase significantly if it is not treated appropriately.
Accordingly, water problems have become more central to armed conflicts in our time, a tendency that rings the alarm and always reminds us of the strong and fundamental link between water, security, and peace.
To overcome these challenges at the local and international levels, we must strengthen cooperation on transboundary waters and emphasize it as an important tool in achieving global stability and peace, through a variety of initiatives and activities that include: research, policy formation, consultations, development training, and knowledge transfer Technology, etc.
Because of the necessity of a water and peace base, the Water Diplomacy Center (WDC) was established on the Jordan University of Science and Technology campus as a tool for water diplomacy; A tool dedicated to developing capabilities to enhance current activities in knowledge management, provide solutions to water problems, help manage water resources, supplement the efforts of existing local and national water institutions, and study the impact of global changes and appropriate governance mechanisms to enhance the concepts of water diplomacy, partnership and mediation in order to ensure a fair peace between the countries located on The banks of rivers and seashores.
The Water Diplomacy Center (WDC) aspires to connect water decision-makers in MENA countries with expertise and knowledge in transboundary water with a focus on legal, negotiating, and technical aspects.
Going forward on this very important matter requires a lot of effort and intellectual awareness to increase investments and innovations in the field of water management in economic and social development, in addition to, increasing the exchange of data and information for cooperation in the field of transboundary waters in the Middle East region.
