AMMAN (Petra) - HRH Prince Hassan has called for a master plan for water in the Middle East.

In his keynote speech at a conference on �€œWater Security in the Middle East�€, in Montreaux, Switzerland on Monday, he said discussions on the carrying and recovery capacities in the region should be based on public policies which take into consideration the elements of human integration.

The Prince stressed the need for a regional community of water and energy for the human environment, a supra-national concept, such as the coal and steel community out of which the European economic community grew. He voiced hope that such a concept may initiate West Asia-North Africa cooperation and bring benefits comparable to European integration. 

Prince Hassan said it is time to establish a third sphere of partnership between governments, the private sector and civil society in order to mobilise the �€œsilenced majority�€ and enable them to become shareholders of their future.

�€œWar does not make additional water, but regional cooperation can�€� There is an urgent need for developed countries to provide technical assistance and support to water poor countries to reach a better level of water safety,�€ he noted.

�€œOur challenge in this part of the world is to come to terms with the international inconsistency and double standards to which we find ourselves subjected year after year. We have had enough of being the subject of development policies. We would like to become the object of development,�€ the Prince added.

Warning that the world�€™s dry areas will be severely affected by climate change, putting agricultural production, food security and human livelihoods in these already vulnerable areas at high risk, he stressed that urgent coordinated efforts are essential to develop effective climate change adaptation strategies and mitigation measures.

The objective of the conference, an initiative launched by Strategic Foresight Group and supported by the governments of Switzerland and Sweden, is to find sustainable and collaborative solutions to the problem of water security and to explore the use of water as an instrument of peace in the Middle East.

While in Switzerland, Prince Hassan and HRH Princess Sarvath visited Fondation Bodmer, a library that houses some 160,000 documents in 80 languages, including Western and Oriental manuscripts.