A Grant Agreement was signed today between the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UNHabitat) and Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (the Fund) by which the Fund will contribute the sum of Kuwaiti Dinars 4 million (equivalent to U.S.$ 13.2 million) to finance the Improved Resilience to Transboundary Sand and Dust storms in Kuwait and Iraq Project, which will be administered by UNHabitat. The grant is expected to cover the entire cost of the project.

The Grant Agreement was signed by United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the Program Excellency Maimunah Mohd Sharif, and by Mr. Marwan A. Th. AlGhanem, Director-General of Kuwait Fund.

The Project aims to identify the main causes that lead to the formation of sand and dust storms in terms of climatic, geological, and chemical factors, and provide solutions in the areas suffering from these storms. This will be achieved through analysis of information using specialized programs to obtain results that help to carry out fieldwork to mitigate the negative effects of these storms.The main components of the project are:

1. Prepare Technical, Economical and Health indicators, and procurement documents for goods and services
2. Physical intervention and fieldworks
3. Monitoring and analysis of results
4. Securing project sustainability

The Fund's contribution is an expression of its developmental and humanitarian commitment to address the devastating effects of environmental imbalances, including the increased phenomenon of sand and dust storms and their negative impacts on public health and the economy of the affected areas, specifically on the State of Kuwait. This project is also considered the culmination of the continued joint efforts and bilateral cooperation between the UNHabitat and the State of Kuwait.

The project will help reduce the amount and number of occurrences of sand and dust storms in two specific areas, Muthanna and Dhi Qar provinces in the Republic of Iraq, which are located about 250 kilometers north of the Kuwaiti border, and contribute to about 40% of the total amount of sand and dust falling on the state of Kuwait. The Positive results that are expected from the project will establish a proven methodology that can be utilized to mitigate the sand and dust storms in this region and similar phenomena in other parts of the world. Moreover, the project will directly contribute to maximizing regional efforts in achieving a set of sustainable development goals, most notably the eleventh goal on creating sustainable cities and local communities, the thirteenth goal on expanding the scope of measures to mitigate and adapt to climate change, and the seventeenth goal on strengthening global partnerships and cooperation in achieving development goals.