Jenin Governor Gives a Presentation About the Water Situation During Workshop in Cairo, and Brings New Project


Translated from Maan News
16 July 2008
12:50 PM

Jenin. Maan. Kaddoura Mousa, Jenin Governor, returned from Egypt, where he participated in the international workshop held in Cairo between 12 – 14 July 2008, regarding “the future of ground water in the Middle East and North Africa.”

Water policy makers from the region attended the workshop, in addition to government representatives from the water sector, donor agencies, and nongovernmental organizations and academic institutions.

The Governor said that a new project will be funded for the Samour area south of the Jenin Governorate, in cooperation with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The Governor said that the workshop launched the IUCN’s regional water program “The International Union for the Preservation of Nature in West Asia/ Middle East.”

Discussion focused on water issues, ground water reserves, discovering the most effective methods to improve the collection of water, and managing water sources.

During the international workshop, the Governor spoke about the water situation in the Jenin Governorate, and the tremendous water shortages due to the current situation of Palestinians.

The Governor added that the project of two years ago, known as EMPOWERS, was based on developing the local water governance systems, improving access to water and water rights for the marginalized groups, and using a participatory system that brings together those concerned to analyze the data and develop a common vision and realizing it, as part of an approach known as “the dialogue and participatory work of those concerned.”

The EMPOWERS approach depends on having those concerned working together to solve their problems and finding solutions; allowing everybody to voice their concerns and give their opinion, with the aim of strengthening good governance of water resource, and maximizing citizen’s benefits without harming the local environment on the long run.

The Governor said that in light of the tremendous success of this experiment in the Jenin Governorate, which resulted in establishing a water data bank that includes the various sectors, first and foremost including the water sector, then electricity and education, we are now hoping to expand and include all sectors. He said this experience was useful for starting a new project in the Sanour area south of the Jenin Governorate, in cooperation with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.”