War-torn Libya is determined to put in place measures to mitigate damage to agriculture wrought by climate change and to use water resources sustainably, a government representative said on Thursday.
Fathi Beram, assistant undersecretary at Libya's agriculture ministry made the pledge in opening remarks to a national workshop on a project to maximise the potential of treated wastewater and drainage water for agricultural development in Libya, taking place in Tunisia.
The workshop "reaffirms Libya’s commitment to its role and responsibilities in dealing with the consequences of climate change in agriculture, and its readiness to invest in the sustainable use of water," said Beram.
The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation's representative in Libya, Mohamed Al-Ansi, was also present at the ceremony in Tunis to inaugurate the workshop, which he said reflected FAO's commitment to implementing measures to tackle the region's water scarcity and safeguard supplies amid climate change.
The workshop "reflects the organization's insistence on completing all efforts aiming at addressing water scarcity in the region, and putting in place the necessary action plans for protecting this strategic natural resource in light of climate change, with the aim of achieving sustainable agriculture,” said Ansi.
The workshop "will draw up a 'roadmap' for needed investments in treating water for agricultural development, which will help investors take informed decisions, based on real data that really reflects national needs," Ansi stated.
The project aims at producing a diagnosis of the production, storage and use of unconventional water sources in agriculture through national assessment reports of the Maghreb countries. It will be followed by a sub-regional action plan highlighting the potential for collaboration and fostering investment, according to FAO's statement.
During the workshop, a national multidisciplinary team was identified that will oversee implementation of the project through all of its phases. These phases range from field research on the use of non-conventional water to generating actionable results that support fundraising and the development of treated wastewater and drainage water reuse programmes in Libya, the statement said.
The project is part of the Regional Initiative on Water Scarcity launched by FAO in 2013 to help Near East and North Africa (NENA) region countries to address food and water security for sustainable economic and social development - two of their most urgent challenges, said FAO
