CIHEAM

Drought management network for the Middle East, Mediterranean Region and Central Asia

In 2001, CIHEAM, ICARDA and the FAO set up NEMEDCA, a drought management network whose main purpose is to promote cooperation in this field between countries in the Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and Central Asian regions.

In 2007, this network was adapted to the new scenario drawn up by the project MEDROPLAN (Mediterranean drought preparedness and mitigation planning), financed by the European Union’s MEDA-Water programme. MEDROPLAN ran from 2003 to 2008 and involved ten partners from six Mediterranean countries. Its main outcome was the publication of the “Drought Management Guidelines”, which provide a methodology for the preparation of proactive drought management plans that could be adapted to different geographical and socio-economic contexts. Most of the work in 2008 consisted in organising international meetings at various levels to make the MEDROPLAN approach to drought management planning more widely known.

When the MEDROPLAN project ended in June 2008, the NEMEDCA network took over the task of ensuring ongoing cooperation on drought and thus enabled members of the MEDROPLAN consortium, together with scientists, stakeholders and officials in other Mediterranean countries, to maintain the cooperative links established through their participation in the programme. Members of the consortium have thus been able to continue sharing experiences and findings.

Conferences

Second International Conference on Drought Management, Istanbul (Turkey), 4-6 March 2010
This conference was organised back to back with the 8th CIHEAM ministerial meeting, which addressed "The effects of climate change on food security and food safety in the Mediterranean Region and action to be taken". The ministerial meeting drew upon the NEMEDCA network’s expertise when it came to draw up recommendations.

See the programme here
See Final recommendations