FAO in collaboration with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), is organizing a National Water Auditing training under the title Water Governance Analysis. The two-day training is taking place on the 18^th and 19^th of November 2021. It aims at building on the participants prior knowledge to better understand water governance in general and in Lebanon and to identify the key water-related problems that need to be solved.

Thirty FIVE (35) Participants are attending the training and are being introduced to the terminology, definitions and key concepts of Water Auditing/Water Governance, its value, its related phases in addition to understanding their role as national agency’s representatives and other agencies’ role and perspectives in supporting the Water Auditing process. The main objectives of the Water Governance Analysis training included: (i) building on the participants prior knowledge to better understand water governance and one conceptual framework for its analysis; (ii) supporting participants in better understanding the governance of the water sector in Lebanon, including the legal and policy framework, informal rules, organizations, and processes among different other institutional arrangements; and (iii) helping participants identify key water-related problems that need and can be solved as an outcome of the workshop in presence of several stakeholders, feeding into the water governance analysis exercise carried out jointly by FAO and the Ministry of Energy and Water.

This training is a follow up to the “Rapid Water Accounting and Advanced Water Accounting” training that was held in February 2020 in Lebanon, which aimed at strengthening the capacities and knowledge of concerned governmental, institutional and nongovernmental actors working on water governance towards the implementation of this process.

Professor Yasmine Jabali from Balamand University had to postpone other important engagements to attend this workshop. “It is really worth it!” she said.

Doha Jammoul, from the Litani River Authority is eager to know more about water governance as this is the area of her expertise.

Abdo Fleyhane from CHEML Company shares the same enthusiasm as Doha. He is attending the workshop to learn about water governance and institutional challenges.

Undertaking water governance analysis alongside the current water accounting activities at the country level, can provide the necessary basis for the sustainable water management, ensuring environmental, economic and social sustainability and improving rural livelihoods, especially of people dependent on water resources.

This activity is implemented under the regional project “Implementing the 2030 Agenda for water efficiency/productivity and water sustainability in NENA countries” directly under the Regional Water Scarcity Initiative. This project is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.​