For many years, PRIO and UNESCWA have collaborated on reports on trends in conflict and governance in the Arab region. This collaboration will now be strengthened and expanded through a new formalised partnership between the organisations.
Over the coming years, PRIO and UNESCWA will work together to develop new knowledge and better tools for understanding transboundary risks to human development in the region. This includes developing new cutting-edge quantitative risk forecasting models, building on the important innovations done through the Uppsala-based ViEWS project, to better anticipate and mediate risks and consequences connected to armed conflict. The project will also have a focus on the climate and security nexus. We will make use of new, and more fine-grained, climatic data produced by UNESCWA to better understand the intersection between security and climate change – especially related to food insecurity and water scarcity – in the region. The broader project will produce state-of-the-art knowledge, and work closely with policy and decision makers in the region, through the various fora convened by UNESCWA.
