Inauguration of WEFE Nexus technical intervention in Jordan of the Matchmaker 2 Project

The inauguration of the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus technical intervention in Wadi Shuayb, in Salt, Jordan, of the MENA Water Matchmaker 2 Project will take place on the8 May 2023 in Wadi Shuayb, Salt-Jordan (10:00 am – 12:00 pm). The event will present the completed field works to a targeted audience, highlighting the added value of the WEFE Nexus approach and its potential for replication in Jordan, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and beyond, contributing to the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) Water Policy Framework for Action 2030 and Sweden’s Strategy for MENA 2021–2025.

Background

Jordan is a water-scarce country that faces significant challenges related to competing water uses by different sectors. At the same time, the increasing demand for water and energy, along with the need to provide food security and conserve ecosystems, has put enormous pressure on the country’s limited resources. Therefore, the application of the integrated WEFE Nexus approach is crucial to achieving sustainable development goals and improving the livelihoods of the Jordanian people.

The MENA Water Matchmaker 2 Project aims to prove, through piloting, the integrated concept of applying local WEFE Nexus technical solutions while capacitating beneficiary groups on employment options, offering measurable and scalable contributions for further application in MENA countries. These contribute to national priorities for natural resource efficiency, as well as the UfM Water Policy Framework for Action 2030 and its Financing Strategy and the Strategy for Sweden’s regional development cooperation with the MENA 2021–2025.

The MENA Water Matchmaker 2 Project technical pilots incorporate the WEFE Nexus and their inter-relations:

• Water: Utilising tertiary treated wastewater, through a nature-based solution, ie. constructed wetlands, for irrigation.
• Energy: Utilising solar power infrastructure for irrigation, while lowering costs, reducing the carbon footprint, and increasing water efficiency for energy production (where applicable).
• Food: Utilising treated wastewater for agriculture production.
• Ecosystems: Assisting local ecosystems and the services they provide through constructed wetlands towards increasing food production; increasing the irrigated farms’ ecological niche; improving environmental conditions over the irrigated area e.g. soil
• conditions, including compared to the direct application of wastewater coming from a wastewater treatment plant that does not include tertiary treatment.

The technical interventions in Wadi Shuayb included:

• Building 3 constructed wetlands for tertiary treatment of a portion of the secondary treated effluent of the Wadi Shuayb Wastewater Treatment Plant, providing 21 m3 of treated wastewater/day for irrigation in 3 pilot farms.
• Planting of trees in the new irrigation plots in the 3 pilot farms.
• Installing 3 irrigation networks of total 9 dunums in the 3 pilot farms.
• Installing 3 solar power stations supplying with 40 kWp to cover the irrigation pumping costs of the new plantations.
• Donating canopy analyzers to research institutes measuring health of plants irrigated with treated wastewater from constructed wetlands.

Capacity building activities have been built around the technical intervention and a training workshop will be organized on 7-9 May 2023, in Amman.