Permanent Secretary of the General-Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development, at the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Andreas Gregoriou has stressed the need to move from political commitments to specific actions and investments to address the increasing pressures on the Mediterranean's water resources.
The Cypriot official was speaking at the 2nd Ministerial Meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) on Water, representing the Republic of Cyprus. The meeting took place on Monday, in Rome.
A press release by the Ministry says that the 2nd Ministerial Meeting, hosted by Italy and co-chaired by Jordan and the European Commission, brought together 40 delegations from the member states of the Union for the Mediterranean.
A new Ministerial Declaration on Water in the Mediterranean was adopted during the meeting, emphasising on resilience, integrated water resources management and the development of conventional and unconventional water sources, including desalination and reuse.
“The challenges facing our region, including water scarcity, drought, increasing demand, pollution and the risks associated with climate change, require coordinated action and greater emphasis on implementation,” Gregoriou stressed during his intervention in the Plenary.
Referring to the experience of Cyprus, which has been facing significant pressures on its water resources over time, he noted the importance of an integrated approach, combining demand management, efficient water use and reduction of losses with desalination, reuse of treated urban wastewater and protection of available water resources.
The press release says that Cyprus welcomed the priorities set by the Ministerial Declaration, among other things, for strengthening resilience to climate change, the exploitation of unconventional water resources, digitalization, the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE Nexus) and the strengthening of investments in the water sector.
Gregoriou also expressed Cyprus’ support for the further strengthening of the UfM Regional Platform for Water and for the continuation of cooperation between Member States and relevant partners, highlighting the importance of exchanging knowledge and good practices in addressing common challenges.
"Cyprus remains committed to constructively contributing to the implementation of the UfM Water Agenda and to strengthening cooperation for a more resilient, sustainable and water-secure Mediterranean," he concluded.
