IAEA and transboundary aquifers: Highlight on the northwest Sahara aquifer system

Experience shows that improving the wise management of shared aquifers depends on two key strategies. The first is to enhance cooperation between the countries sharing the aquifer, for example from exchanging information and lessons learned. Another example is to create a regional legal framework such as a joint convention that will help prevent negative impacts by one country affecting another. The second strategy is to gain a better understanding of how the aquifer works through the most advanced science available - namely, through the use of cutting-edge isotopic techniques. The IAEA is helping countries to implement both strategies through a variety of projects targeted at transboundary aquifers. Some focus only on the improvement of scientific understanding. Others, like the new 'Nubian Project', are working on both filling information gaps and improving inter-governmental cooperation, with financial support from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF). Based on its experiences with transboundary aquifers, the IAEA has already achieved a number of success stories where the scientific understanding of how shared aquifers work has been enhanced. This information has further been used to help water managers better meet the needs of the populations that they serve who are dependent on groundwater resources