Last week water management professionals from the MENA region completed their first week of a specialised training programme on water management. The training project is provided by Clingendael Academy, UNESCO-IHE and WaterFocus -financed by the Dutch MFA as part of the Shiraka Training Programme.

Water challenges in MENA region

The countries of Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan are beset by a variety of different challenges in the field of water. These include desertification, desalination, rain water reclamation, purification and water governance. By pooling together the region’s resources and expertise in the field of water, connecting it to the Dutch water sector, and by working together, these challenges can be met and overcome in a sustainable and effective manner.

From individual skills to country- and thematic approaches

This training made ample use of the Clingendael Training method, combining skills with knowledge, while tailoring these elements to the working practice of the participants. In the beginning of the week participants were trained on their individual presentation skills, which they brought to bear in a team exercise presenting their respective country’s main water challenges.

Their individual skills were complemented in turn by the many diverse topical lectures provided by UNESCO-IHE and WaterFocus. This allowed participants to connect and exchange insights with Dutch experts on water management policies. The participants also got to see Dutch approaches to water management in practice, during working visits to polders and sluices in Flevoland, the Dutch National Water Authority, and Urk.

Back Home Action Plan

This provided a solid basis for the final exercise of the week, whereby mixed country groups presented their own Back Home Action Plans in an open space setting. Their chosen themes included:

• sanitation sub-products
• desalination
• artificial recharge
• rainwater harvesting

In their presentations all of the group members explained how they would apply their acquired skills, insights, connections and knowledge to accomplish their short-and long term goals in these crosscutting themes. All the while they received feedback and recommendations from experts, and most importantly, from their colleagues. This first Back Home Action Plan and feedback will serve as an excellent starting point for the second week of another fruitful week of training in Morocco.

Would you like to know more?

Do you want to know more about this training programme on Water Management? Please do not hesitate to contact the course coordinators.

For more on the Clingendael Method, please check here.

For more on the Shiraka Training Programme, financed by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, be sure to check this webpage.