ESCWA WEEKLY NEWS No. 39

2 September 2019



	Technology in agriculture in Lebanon On 26-27 August, ESCWA held a technical meeting on Context-based Technologies to Enhance the Efficiency and Resilience of Agri-food Systems in Lebanon. Over 50 participants, including farmers and experts from the Ministry of Agriculture in Lebanon, and other relevant stakeholders, discussed how they can play complementary roles to facilitate technology transfer, adaptation and use in agriculture in Lebanon. Policy recommendations and key messages from the meeting will inform the new agriculture strategy of Lebanon for 2020-2025. The meeting was held in partnership with the Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture and FAO in Lebanon. Read more

	Tunisian women, peace and security ESCWA participated in the International Conference on Tunisian Women, Peace and Security, organized by Free Sight Association – Tunisia and held in Tunis on 24 August. Akram Khalifa, the Commission’s Regional Advisor on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, spoke about shared experiences from the region in rolling out the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda, the role of ESCWA in supporting some of these experiences and the importance of partnerships between governmental and non-governmental entities in such processes. The conference brought together about 30 participants representing the Tunisian Ministry of Women, Family, Children and Elderly, and Tunisian NGOs from across the country, as well as partner institutions. The conference came to conclude a one-year capacity-building programme for Tunisian civil society on WPS that ESCWA had supported since 2018. Read more


	ESCWA at World Water week In Stockholm, ESCWA took part in World Water Week organized on 25-30 August. The Director of the Sustainable Development Policies Division, Ms. Roula Majdalani, highlighted the relevance of the theme of this year’s World Water Development Report “Leave no One Behind” to the Arab region, where the challenge of water scarcity, migrants and the growing number of youth seeking services, jobs and decent living are the key challenges to be addressed in meeting SDG-6 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In a separate meeting on the “Green Climate Fund (GCF) initiative to develop guidelines for transformative water projects”, a new initiative was presented to the international water community in that regard. Majdalani also presented the outcomes of RICCAR, which provides a science base to generate knowledge and raise awareness on the impact of climate change on water resources in the Arab region. Read more

	ESCWA bolsters cooperation with key European partners On 30 August, the Executive Secretary of ESCWA, Ms. Rola Dashti, heading a delegation from the Commission, wrapped up a tour in Norway, Germany and Switzerland, where she met with development partners in Europe that have a longstanding history of support to the Arab region. Dashti held several meetings with high-level officials at the Norwegian, German and Swiss Foreign Affairs Offices. Discussions tackled the UN reform as an opportunity to improve collaboration among regional entities for effective delivery of their mandates. They also revolved around the situation in the Arab region, with focus on countries in conflict. The senior officials also delved into means to enhance cooperation to help Arab countries achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Read more


	Did you know... … that up to 60% of the employed Arab population may not be covered by social insurance and that the region suffers from one of the highest rates of youth unemployment in the world? Unemployment is also higher amongst young women, reaching 47% compared with 24% among young men. While the global average of unemployment is 13.1%, the Arab region average is as high as 30%. Meanwhile, 60% of the Arab population is under 30 years of age. By 2030, youth between 15 and 24 are expected to become 92 million. If they are provided with adequate skills and opportunities, they represent a great potential for innovation, environment protection and peace. Read more