MOGADISHU, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Somalia on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further enhance their cooperation and effectiveness to improve Somalia's water security.

The MoU will strengthen their efforts for joint advocacy and support in the implementation of the strategy of the Somali Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, FAO representative in Somalia Etienne Peterschmitt said, adding that the agreement will also lay a solid foundation for Somalia's inter-agency cooperation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation.

"Both agencies have common objectives with regards to safe and adequate water access for rural communities to protect lives and livelihoods," he said in a joint statement issued in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

The MoU, which has been endorsed by the Somali Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, supports the Water4Life initiative, which aims to improve access to safe and adequate water for human consumption and livelihoods, household nutrition, and sustainable community water resource management and rural water supply in Somalia.

The two UN agencies said they have worked in partnership through past project-specific agreements that include the generation of water source information and mapping for the rural water sector as well as for drought monitoring and humanitarian response.

The FAO and UNICEF have also worked together on the development and implementation of the National Water Resources Strategy and Road Map, the National Water Sector Coordination Facility.

They have worked on joint programming, alongside the World Food Program, for improving health and nutrition outcomes for children and rural communities under the Joint Resilience Action in Somalia, a multi-agency UN program framework for ongoing development work and resource mobilization.

Somali Minister of Energy and Water Resources Jama Taqal Abbas said: "By working together with FAO and UNICEF, we are in a good position to make great strides in our long-term strategy for water security in the country."

Wafaa Saeed, UNICEF Somalia representative, said the integrated response will strengthen the programs that address Somalia's complex situation where 8 million people are in need of water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance.

"Together, we can enhance community access to climate-adaptive water sources and strengthen their resilience through long-term interventions," she said. Enditem

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