The Inventory was prepared under the ESCWA-BGR Cooperation project which began in 1992 and was re-launched in 2006 with the aim to enhance collaboration on shared water resources between ESCWA member countries, as well as strengthen capacity for integrated water resources management and the protection of freshwater resources.
Team of the Inventory of Shared Water Resources in Western Asia in Front of the ESCWA building in Beirut, Lebanon 2011
The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) is one of the five Regional Commissions of the United Nations Secretariat. ESCWA is comprised of 17 Arab countries situated in Western Asia and North Africa: Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. ESCWA seeks to promote sustainable and integrated approaches to socio-economic development in the Arab region by providing a platform for congress and coordination in support of regional integration.
Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR) is the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources. It is the central scientific authority providing advice to the Federal Government of the Germany and to the private sector in all geo-related issues, such as energy and mineral resources, groundwater, soil, geo-hazards, disposal of radioactive waste, deep subsurface use and storage of CO2. BGR currently implements around 30 technical cooperation projects worldwide.