We are thrilled to share that on August 29th, our AGREEMed project took center stage at the EAAE Congress in Rennes, France, from August 29th to September 1st, 2023.

 IAMM, one of our dedicated partners, proudly presented a scientific poster shedding light on: "The Impact of Overexploitation of Groundwater Resources on the Resilience of Agricultural Farms in Semi-arid Zones."

On 06 March 2023 AGREEMed Team in Tunisia ( CERTE) in collaboration with the AGREEMed team in Italy (IRIDRA) organized a participative workshop on "Co-design and feasibility study of NBS system to adapt quality to the use". 

The workshop was organized in Hammamet Tunisia, and different stakeholders took part in the event such as farmers, The National Environmental Protection Agency ANPE, The Hammamet Environmental Education Association AERE, The Regional Commissioner for Agricultural Development CRDA Nabeul, The  National Sanitation Authority ONAS, The Tunisian Union of Agriculture and Fisheries UTAP. 

During the workshop, AGREEMed partners made a general presentation on NBSs: what is an NBS. Advantages and disadvantages of adopting NBSs versus the traditional “grey” approach followed by a description of the local situation and challenges concerning water availability/quality/use.  The 3rd session of the workshop concerned the presentation of the  Outcomes of stakeholders meeting held on February 8 and the proposed case studies: -Option 1): large-scale use of mobile Constructed Wetland (CW) coupled with Advance Oxidation Process (AOP) -Option 2): Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) fed with treated effluents to contrast saltwater intrusion and preserve groundwater quality. 

The last session of the day was dedicated to goal setting and identification of the feasibility study based on the proposed options 1) and 2) presented in session 3. 

From 30 May to 1^st June and AGREEMed workshop was held in La Cité d’Innovation Souss Massa in Morocco as part of the AGREEMed project, funded by the PRIMA program and coordinated by the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University.

The workshop began with a presentation of the project’s progress to date, followed by a workshop on “Water resources governance: the case of the Souss-Massa aquifer agreement”. After this first session, two focus groups were held, one on “Typology of different farms in the Chtouka-Massa plain” and the other on “Nature-based solutions as a win-win strategy for adapting to climate change and providing new alternative water sources”.

On the second day of the AGREEMed event in Agadir, two workshops were held, one on “Building bridges for effective water governance”, followed by a workshop on “Non-conventional water resources in the Mediterranean”. The second day was concluded with a round table with the Scientific Committee, the PRIMA project officer, the project stakeholders, and the advisory members.

3 technical visits were organized on June 1^ST. The first trip was to Agadir Water Desalination and Irrigation Plant, The second one was to  INRA Souss Massa and the last one was to the wastewater treatment plant in Agadir.

From 23/02/2023, to 27-02/2023 two teams from UM6P and UIZ participated in a field trip to explore lake Ifni on the Southern side of the Toubkal summit. The purpose of the trip was to collect samples of water and to characterize the rural agriculture and water management of a subbasin that is located in Souss-Massa, which is one of the pilot areas of the Project.

The 1st GJU Symposium on Sustainable Development 2022 on Water, Energy, and Environment was held from October 12–14, 2022, at the German Jordanian University in collaboration with the Technical University of Berlin. The symposium focused on sustainable development goals related to water, energy, and environmental sustainability, intending to connect students and researchers with participants from industry and administration to present and discuss research, applications, optimum solutions, regulations, frameworks, and funds for achieving sustainability.

The symposium was opened with speeches by the President of the German Jordanian University, Prof. Ala'aldeen Al-Halhouli, and representatives from the Higher Ministry of Water and Irrigation and the German Water Partnership. The event featured presentations from a range of experts, including Dr. Jihad Mahamid from the Higher Ministry for Water and Irrigation, who discussed water sector challenges in Jordan, and Dr. Johannes Wellmann from TU Berlin and GJU, who presented examples of groundwater and aquifer management in Tunisia, Morocco, and Jordan.

Other presentations focused on experiences from two SBR pilot plants for wastewater treatment and reuse by Thomas Gester from ATB GmbH, closed-loop reverse osmosis challenges and opportunities for the MENA region by Dr. Joachim Koschikowski from Fraunhofer ISE, and brackish water desalination in Qatar and Iran by M.Sc. Lina Streckwall from TU Berlin. Dr. Madher Bdour from the German Jordanian University also presented on brackish water desalination with an adaptation of renewable energy resources.

The symposium concluded with a podium discussion on the chances and limitations of wastewater as an alternative water resource in Jordan, featuring contributions from Dr. Jihad Mahamid, Prof. Latifa Bousselmi from CERTE, and Prof. Dr. Kerstin Wydra. The event also provided opportunities for networking and sharing ideas during lunch breaks.

AGREEMed project was presented describing the overall project idea, scope, targets, and expected outcomes. Prof. Mohammad Al-Addous, Dr. Mathhar Bdour (GJU) and Dr. Johannes Willmann (TU-Berlin) presented the role of both organizations and how the development on the progress of water desalination is initiated in achieving more efficient desalination process and minimizing the rejected water, along with its management. Participants from Jordan, Germany, and Tunisia participated at the discussion.  

Overall, the 1st GJU Symposium on Sustainable Development 2022 was a successful event that brought together a range of experts to discuss sustainable development goals related to water, energy, and environmental sustainability. The presentations and discussions highlighted the challenges and opportunities for achieving sustainability in the MENA region and provided insights into potential solutions, regulations, frameworks, and funds for achieving these goals.

The Regional Water Exhibition organized by Souss-Massa Basin Agency took place on 8 March 2023 in Tiznit-Souss Massa Region. 

At the exhibition, the AGREEMed project was presented by the project coordinator Professor Yassine Ait Brahim from UM6P, and Pr. Hssaissoune Mohammed from UIZ. The exhibition was attended by the Minister of Equipment and Water, different organizations that work in the water sector, academic institutions, and companies that specialize in water management technologies.