Winter 2015
MENA NWC
Middle East and North Africa Network of Water Centers of Excellence
Board of Directors Meets in Muscat
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Board of Directors Meets in
Muscat
1
MENA NWC Attends IWA,
Spreads Word About
Center
1
Assembly of Governing
Members Hold Inaugural
Meeting
2
RSS & UJ Celebrate
Sustainable Environmental
Actions
2
The MENA NWC Board of Directors tackled
issues of transition at its fifth meeting in
Oman, Muscat, on November 11, 2015.
MENA NWC Executive Director Shawki
Barghouti said meeting objectives included
a discussion around fundraising and the
status of the MENA NWC Directorate in
Jordan. “The Board reviewed and discussed
the way forward for the MENA NWC after
the USAID FABRI Project winds down,” said
Barghouti. “We also talked about the future
interim location of the Directorate following
the termination of the project.”
Members expressed the need to restructure
the Board to respond more effectively to
MENA NWC’s evolving needs in this period of transition from a USAID-funded project to an independent regional institution.
They also highlighted the importance of
having a communication mechanism
among member centers and requested
that a robust communications strategy be
developed.
The Board meeting was also attended by
MENA NWC staff, representatives from
the FABRI team, and John Wilson of
USAID.
MENA NWC Holds First
Biennial Congress in Oman 3
19 Locations in Jordan being
Studied as Potential
Wastewater Treatment
Sites
4
New Report Provides Sneak
Peek into Progress of
Research Grants
4
MENA NWC Welcomes Two
New Team Members
4
MENA NWC Attends IWA, Spreads Word
About Network Center Research
MENA NWC member center Arab Countries
Water Utilities Association (ACWUA) hosted
the International Water Association (IWA)
Development Congress and Exhibition 2015
in Jordan on October 17-22.
The event gave ACWUA the opportunity to
meet regional water professionals who are
working toward innovative solutions to the
water cycle challenges in urban settings.
The theme of the 2015 event was the development and delivery of water and sanitation
solutions in developing countries.
MENA NWC sponsored part of the event and
moderated two workshops,—one called
“Scaling Research for Impact,” moderated by
Shawki Barghouti, MENA NWC Executive
Director, and one called “Groundwater Management,” moderated by Ghazi Abu Rumman, MENA NWC Director of Policy, Research and Development.
MENA NWC booth at IWA Water & Development
Congress & Exhibition
presented four research papers—
“Managed aquifer recharge using treated
wastewater to mitigate seawater intrusion
along Jamma Coast”; “Conjunctive Use of
Treated Wastewater and groundwater in
agriculture”; “The Sustainability of The
Conjunctive Use of Groundwater and
Throughout the Congress, MENA NWC team Treated Wastewater in Agriculture”; and
“Large-Scale Characterization of Groundmembers met with policy makers, potential
international private sector partners, and do- water Dynamics in Water-Stressed Areas.”
nors. The team also manned a booth and