International Conference on Drought Management strategies in Arid and Semi Arid Regions

The frequency of natural disasters between 1990 and 2006, particularly water-related disasters, has increased markedly – as has the estimated economic damage they cause. Extreme events have also become more frequent. Between 1900 and March 2007, 16301 disaster events were recorded throughout the world – 6.27 billion people were affected; fatalities were more than 37.58 million and the estimated economic damage was more than US$1,790 billion. In terms of fatalities and the number of people affected, Asia is the region most vulnerable to water-related disasters, accounting for more than 45% of fatalities and more than 90% […]

The warming of Earth’s climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and the rising global mean sea level.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has declared in 2008 that water resources are amongst systems and sectors that are particularly vulnerable to climate change and stand to be strongly impacted by it.

The Middle East – North Africa (MENA) Region is one of the most waterless areas on Earth. The […]

A high-level conference on water cooperation will take place from 20 to 22 August in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Organized jointly by the government of Tajikistan and the United Nations, the conference is held within the framework of the International Year of Water Cooperation.

Emomalii Rahmon, the President of Tajikistan, will open the meeting with the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova; UN-Water Chair, Michel Jarraud; Tajikistan’s Minister for Economic Development and Trade, Sharif Rahimzoda; Uganda’s Water Minister, Flavia Nabugere; and the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), Sven Alkalaj.

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