The Mediterranean Sea basin is a region suffering from water stress, and the situation is expected to worsen due to climate change, making water availability a significant challenge for its agriculture. In recent years, the region has experienced prolonged periods of severe drought, accompanied by record temperatures and diminishing water resources. This urgent situation makes it essential to quickly rethink our traditional farming practices toward new and more resilient agricultural systems with more efficient use of natural resources to sustain competitive Mediterranean agriculture. Rainfed agriculture (which is an agricultural practice that relies entirely on rainwater for the production of field crops without using any irrigation techniques that depend on other sources to provide the water that different crops need, and it is one of the ancient agricultural methods still in use today) is the dominant model in the Mediterranean region, which, in light of the increasing water scarcity caused by climate change, leads to reduced production affecting farmers' income and contributing to land abandonment and migration to urban areas or other countries. Despite this, many ancient water technologies have been developed around the world to collect and store water, the provision of water in arid areas that enhances food production has gradually been neglected with the evolution of agricultural systems and the intensive use of other irrigation techniques. Therefore, it has become essential to address innovative and flexible methods that help preserve agricultural lands in arid regions and enhance productivity in light of climate changes. The partners of this promising project have been carefully selected based on each partner's experience in the project's field and their previous work in related research projects funded locally or internationally, whether completed or ongoing. The project consists of multi-stakeholder unions (small and medium-sized enterprises, farmers' cooperatives, universities/agricultural institutes, consultants, and associations). The project includes 11 partners from 11 Mediterranean countries (Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Cyprus, and Turkey) with deep expertise in agricultural systems in arid regions, water harvesting systems, as well as in developing and evaluating the sustainability and profitability of new sustainable value chains.
