EU Officials Pledge to Develop More Water-saving Technologies in Farming as Droughts Worsen

Officials from nine southern European Union (EU) countries pledged to work together to develop more water-saving technologies in agriculture as the prospect of worsening droughts puts additional strain on farmers and threatens food security. The promises came during a gathering in Cyprus of the so called MED9 countries - France, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Portugal, Malta, Spain and Slovenia - to address growing water scarcity as a result of climate change, especially in the Mediterranean region, which they say is being affected to a greater degree than other parts of the 27-member bloc. The officials also pledged to share technical and practical data and launch joint research programmes to make water use as efficient as possible. The MED9 officials also urged the EU to come up with a common approach to water conservation while taking into account regional requirements. Source: Oman News Agency