The Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD) organized a workshop on regional policy dialogue for solar energy irrigation systems, in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) - Regional Office for the Near East, the League of Arab States (LAS) and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), in Geeza Province, Egypt from the 8th to the 9th of December 2019.

The workshop was attended by high-level experts representing government entities working in the water, energy and agriculture sectors from Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, Sudan and Yemen, as well as experts in the region, the private sector, academia, international and regional organizations and NGOs.

The workshop was a continuation of the previous activities of FAO, AOAD and LAS and the Nexus Regional Dialogue Program-MENA of GIZ, the Implementation of a project on solar energy working irrigation systems (SPIS) in the Arab region, which resulted in two training workshops and two policy documents on SPIS in Tunisia and Egypt, and a regional report on solar energy irrigation systems (SPIS) in the Arab region.

 The regional dialogue aimed to discuss the main results of the country reports and the regional report by answering several important questions about the true costs and benefits of solar energy irrigation systems (SPIS) in the Arab region and lessons learned from the Arab region and other regions, and what are the current policies, laws, regulations, support systems for solar energy irrigation systems and their impacts and the necessary adjustments needed to manage risks and realize the potential of these systems and how to devote them to improve the livelihoods of farmers and improve water, energy and food security.

Moreover, the discussions focused on policy options for solar energy irrigation systems in the countries participating in the meeting.