Euro-Mediterranean Water Information System

The Euro-Mediterranean Information System on know-how in the Water sector (EMWIS, in French SEMIDE) is an initiative of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership initiated by a Ministerial conference on fresh water in 1996 and based in in Sophia Antipolis, South-East of France. EMWIS provides a strategic tool for exchanging information and knowledge in the water sector between and within the 43 Euro Mediterranean countries of the Union for the Mediterranean. It aims at facilitating the sharing of information and experiences, as well as the development of common tools and cooperation programmes in the water sector. Thematic areas covered includes: water scarcity, water financing, water accounting, water quality monitoring. It is supporting dissemination activities in several water innovation projects. EMWIS works closely with different regional and international actors such as the European Commission and the European Environment Agency in particular for information and data management (SEIS, WISE, INSPIRE). It has collaborated with the European Space Agency and remote sensing centres in Mediterranean countries as well in building capacities for water managers in the Mediterranean in terms of using earth observation technology.