Supporting Palestines Water Scarcity and Drought Management and

Supporting Palestine’s Water Scarcity and Drought Management and Mitigation Plan DESA and other UN Partners (ECA, FAO, WMO, UNISDR, UNEP, UNCCD, UNDP)

Outline 1 Palestine Water Scarcity and Drought Challenges 2 Existing Water Scarcity and Drought Programs and Gaps 3 The Capacity Building Program on Water Scarcity and Drought Preparedness and Mitigation Plan for Palestine

Palestine is one of the most arid countries in the world

The Impacts of WS&D on Palestine • During a drought episode which afflicted WB in 20072008 season, the estimated direct losses in plant production of rainfed agriculture was more than $113. 5 million USD based on farm gate prices; the indirect losses were estimated by more than $250 M USD and more than 200, 000 small ruminants were affected(Mo. A 2008). • Ground water level has been observed declining in the past 8 years. • 35% of the Palestinian communities are not served with essential water supply and sanitation.

Uncertainty of Water Scarcity and Drought Management for Palestine -Tansboundary Water challenge

Uncertainty of Water Scarcity and Drought Management for Palestine -Climate change challenge Annual precipitation prediction under different climate change scenarios

Palestine has done GREAT work on drought management plan Recent Projects • A study on Assessment and Enhancement of the Capacities of • • Institutions dealing with Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought Raising Awareness of Stakeholders about Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought Issues Establishment of Desertification and Drought Data Base and Monitoring System Preparation of Studies and Maps for the Hotspots and Endangered Areas Transfer of Indigenous Knowledge and Appropriate Technologies Related to Desertification and Drought

Palestine ’s Efforts on WS&D Management Plans

Desertification and drought management Gaps Identified by “The National Strategy, Action Programme and Integrated Financing Strategy to Combat Desertification in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 2011” • Lack, weakness and weak enforcement of legislation • Weak institutional capacities and capabilities of public, NGOs, CSOs or private sector and weak coordination mechanisms among them • Weak services and service delivery systems to stakeholders, mainly herders and farmers • Weak participation of different stakeholders in the decision-taking decision-making processes • Lack of information and appropriate data • Lack of proper awareness and appreciation among the people, media, legislators and decision makers • Low interest and budget allocation from PNA and international communities to issues related to combating desertification • Lack of proper national policies, strategies and commitments to combating desertification and applying the proper incentives, policy tools and instruments • Weak regional cooperation • Ambiguity and overlap over responsibilities

Identified Gaps for Managing WS&D in Palestine • Scattered data in different institutes and government agencies and not easy to access. • Lack of drought impacts assessment. • Limitations in using high technologies and devices used to monitor and predict drought issues. • Limited frameworks for drought mitigation, which are responseled rather than preventative. • Underdevelopment of policies for drought preparedness, mitigation, and emergency response. • Lack of capacity and training in drought management and policy implementation at government level (national and local).

The Goal of UN-DESA <The Water Scarcity and Drought Preparedness and Mitigation Plan> is: To enhance Palestine’s WS&D management capacity and assist Palestine to further develop and implement the strategies and plans. The objectives of the program are: • Raise awareness of WS&D management methodologies, tools, and BMPs, and enhance the national WS&D mitigation capacity. • Improve Palestine drought monitoring and forecasting capacity. • Reinforce drought monitoring and early warning systems in Palestine. • Develop and Adopt standardized drought management planes and mitigation approaches for Palestine. UN-DESA will achieve the objectives through: • • Foster high-level political forums, workshops, training sessions and regional dialogs. Increase the knowledge and best management practices sharing at all levels. Provide technical and capacity building supports. Promote regional cooperation and partnering for capacity building and improving effectiveness in planning, monitoring and implementation of drought plans.

"Droughts are hard to avert, but their effects can be mitigated. [. . . ] The price of preparedness is minimal compared to the cost of disaster relief. Let us therefore shift from managing crises to preparing for droughts and building resilience. " UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Message for 2013 World Day to Combat Desertification 17 June 2013

Thank you! Feel free to contact: Sami Areikat, Sustainable Development Officer Water, Energy and Capacity Development Branch Division for Sustainable Development UN –DESA United Nations, Room S-2651 405 42 nd Street New York, NY 10017 Tel. 212 -963 -7844 Fax. 917 -367 -3391 E-mail: areikat@un. org Website: http: //sustainabledevelopment. un. org