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By Vera Sordini
Rabat – Agadir will host an EU-funded GLOBAQUA conference in October on management of water shortages and innovations in water management.
The event will be held under the title “Managing Water Scarcity in River Basins: Innovation and Sustainable Development.” The conference aims to ensure the sustainability of water sources.
The conference’s umbrella project is GLOBAQUA, an “EU-funded project aiming to identify the prevalence of, and interaction between, stressors under water scarcity,” according to the project’s website.
European and southern Mediterranean countries’ strategies on water will be the conference’s central theme. Participants will also discuss innovations on water reuse from municipal wastewater treatment, the use of brackish water, seawater desalination, water efficiency, and reusing water in agriculture.
Freshwater systems worldwide are vulnerable to various stressors, including organic and inorganic pollution, water abstraction, land use, and others.
The conference will study the consequences of stressors combined with water scarcity. In order to manage water, officials must understand how water scarcity interacts with other stressors in freshwater. Scientists and water sector professionals must work together to minimize the impact of scarcity.
Managers, stakeholders, approximately 30 policymakers from African and European countries, and representatives from international institutions will come together to exchange expertise at the conference.
The event will also offer participants the opportunity to discuss improvements for areas that are affected by water scarcity.
The conference will take place October 4-6. The agenda includes a field trip to Morocco’s Souss Massa basin near Agadir.
The basin is situated in a very arid area in western Morocco and covers an area of 1,486 square kilometers. The area suffers not only from water scarcity, but also from water abstraction, intensive farming, and saltwater intrusion in the coastal area.
Within the framework of the GLOBAQUA project, Agadir is also hosting a “Training course on Knowledge Brokerage for River Basin Management.” The training course is taking place on October 3.
