Knowledge Management Portal

The proposed TRACE Rehab project aims to combat the ongoing degradation and desertification of Jordan’s dry rangelands (the Badia) and to re-vitalize these depleted agro-pastures essential to the rural population depending on a livestock-based agricultural system. In the long term, the project will contribute to securing community livelihoods and the Bedouin tribal heritage of the country.

Wastewater remains an undervalued resource, all too often seen as a burden to be disposed of or a nuisance to be ignored. This perception needs to change to correctly reflect its value. Wastewater is a potentially affordable and sustainable source of water, energy, nutrients, organic matter and other useful by-products. Improved wastewater management, including the recovery and safe reuse of water and other key constituents, provides a great deal of opportunities. This is especially true in the context of a circular economy, whereby economic development is balanced with the protection of resources and environmental sustainability, and where a cleaner and more sustainable economy has a positive effect on water quality. Wastewater treatment and reuse has a great potential to contribute towards addressing the MENA water crisis. Funded by Sida and managed by IWMI, the ReWater MENA project focuses on the management of treated wastewater for agricultural use in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. The regional project also offers opportunities for south-to-south learning through experience learning under the banner of the National Learning Alliance. The project brings together relevant stakeholders including different ministries, international research centers, and experts in the field to seek sustainable and bankable solutions that increase safe reuse in agriculture. As part of the regional project, ICARDA contributes to Output One and 3 of the project portfolio in Egypt which include: development of a national baseline to support development of a national strategy for reuse; and the development of Local wastewater treatment and reuse (direct and indirect reuse) models. The plans will be developed through participatory methods that involve all key stakeholders including farmers, business ventures, government institutions, and other intended beneficiaries of the reuse models.

ICARDA sees Capacity Development activities at the heart of its mandate with a vision of strengthening the national capacities of its partner countries to achieve their own goals in the areas of food security, agricultural development, and climate change adaptation. The Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD) by its continuous support to the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) is supporting that vision of strengthening the national capacities of its Member Countries. AFESD Annual grant to ICARDA has contributed substantially to the development of young scientists and research organizations in the Arab Countries.

The contribution of the AFESD to the project titled, “Strengthening Innovation and Technology Adoption towards Sustainable Agricultural Productivity in Arab Countries” is designed around four components: Component 1: Innovations and scaling in rain-fed farming systems Component 2: Innovations and scaling forage technologies in rain fed areas Component 3: Innovations and scaling in irrigated farming systems Component 4: Innovations and scaling in agro-pastoral farming systems

The project aims to support Iraq institutions in the preparation of the Second National Communication (SNC) and the Biennial Update Report (BUR) to the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), contributing to develop appropriate strategy for climate mitigation.

The Seed Health Unit (SHU) laboratory expansion plan at ICARDA’s Terbol station in Lebanon involves creating additional space allowing the making of critical modifications to the current laboratory such as segregating the space of incoming & outgoing shipments, separating the testing area of each type of pathogens, availability of staff offices and ensuring their safety.

A third phase of the project will build on the results achieved by verifying and fine-tuning recommended technology packages (wheat and food legume cultivars, agronomic and water management technologies), expanding the number of pilot sites to other agro-ecologies thereby out-scaling the technologies to more end-users, and strengthening the capacity of national research and extension systems to promote the technologies for wider adoption.