The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is one of the regions most exposed to water scarcity. The region has 11 out of the 17 most water-stressed countries in the world, including Tunisia and Morocco, that are respectively subject to a 40% to 80% decrease in freshwater resources. Among users, women and girls are particularly affected by water stress because, in practice, they assume responsibility for the family water supply. Although they play a key role in supplying livelihoods and food security, their ability to act on the management of this resource often remains very limited due to social, economic, and cultural factors. In addition, the aggravation of water stress due to climate change is likely to constitute an aggravating factor in the inequalities affecting them.

The hybrid workshop 'Empower a woman with water and she can change her city: A focus on MENA' will be an opportunity to better understand gender-specific challenges related to water scarcity and access in cities and discuss with government representatives and European institutions concrete ways to promote women’s participation and leadership in urban water governance in the region together with government representatives, development practitioners, and EU institutions. During the event, UNOPS Cities Alliance will also present the new regional programme on water governance and women's empowerment in Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritania, supported by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.

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Speakers

• Giulia Maci, Gender Specialist and Programme Manager Euro-Mediterranean region, UNOPS Cities Alliance
• Guillaume Fine, Deputy Head of Unit, North Africa, DG NEAR, European Commission
• Charafat Afailal, Former Minister in charge of Water, Morocco
• Eng Manar Mahasneh, Secretary General of the Jordan Valley Authority

Debate with key interventions

• H.E. Saja Majali, Ambassador, Embassy of Jordan in Belgium
• Cecile Frobert, Deputy Head of Mission Democratic Governance, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France
• Almotaz Abadi, Deputy Secretary General for Water, Environment and Blue Economy, Union for the Mediterranean
• Rafik Hiahemzizou, Foreign Affairs Adviser, Embassy of Algeria
• Mikael Elofsson, Counsellor and Sida Coordinator, Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU

 

Moderator

Hanne Knaepen, Head of Climate Action and Green Transition, ECDPM

Programme

Introduction
Hanne Knaepen, Head of Climate Action and Green Transition, ECDPM

Presentations 

• Guillaume Fine, Deputy Head of Unit, North Africa, DG NEAR, European Commission
• Charafat Afailal, Former Moroccan Minister in Charge of Water, Expert on water
• Manar Mahasneh, Secretary General, Jordan Valley Authority
• Giulia Maci, Gender Specialist and Manager Euro-Mediterranean region, UNOPS Cities Alliance

Debate with key interventions 

• H.E. Saja Majali, Ambassador, Embassy of Jordan
• Cecile Frobert, Deputy Head of Mission for Democratic Governance, French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs
• Anne Maria Madsen, Counsellor CODEV, Danish Permanent Representation
• Rafik Hiahemzizou, Foreign Affairs Adviser, Embassy of Algeria
• Embassy of Morocco
• Swedish Government Representative

Q&A
Concluding remarks and next steps
 

Watch the recording

Read the article about the event on the Cities Alliance website.