A meeting in Rome on Thursday looked at ways to spur the southern Mediterranean's growing youth population to develop new initiatives and innovative methodologies to sustainably exploit the region's present and future water resources, the Italian foreign ministry said.
The foreign ministry's general directorate for overseas aid coordinated the 'pre-Med' meeting held ahead of of the Mediterranean Dialogues summit in Rome the ministry said.
The three-day summit which kicks off on Thursday is being attended by 45 heads of state and government and representatives from 56 countries and 80 think-tanks, according to the ministry.
"This year, for the first time, the Med Dialogues forum has been enriched with sessions on sustainable development dedicated to the use and management of water due to its value as a strategic, scarce economic good for the region," said foreign minister Angelino Alfano.
