This issue of the Thematic Research Notes discusses the causes and impact of migration among communities in Africa as well as predicted future migration trends.

This report presents a comprehensive regional assessment of the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Sahel in terms of climate change impacts, vulnerabilities, conflict/cooperation and human security at various scales and in a variety of contexts. The Climate Change, Hydro Conflicts and Human Security (CLICO) project builds on interdisciplinary and cross-comparative research covering a variety of geographical scales and historical contexts to unravel social, political, environmental/ ecological and economic conditions in relation to the environment.

Urban wastewater management has become a major challenge in India as infrastructural development and regulations have not kept pace with population growth and urbanisation. This study argues that against the backdrop of water scarcity and climate change, it is important to examine issues related to wastewater reuse more holistically and to investigate the challenges and opportunities for its safe and efficient reuse.

This study has collated information on the role that pollution (air, water and soil pollution) has played in environmental degradation and the consequences of such degradation for human well-being, poverty. The report has primarily collated information from investigative studies that have been conducted in DFID priority countries of sub-Saharan Africa; additional information from key studies is also provided for South and
South East Asia DFID countries.

As geographical areas subjected to rapid urbanisation and constantly  changing land use, peri-urban sites offer women and men greater economic opportunities.At the sametime,peri-urbanresidents are also drawn away from traditionalmeans of livelihood.As the city encroaches into prime agricultural lands in the fringe areas,occupations become more subsistence in nature.  This increases women's workload. Often women, who migrate from rural areas after marriage and settle in peri-urban zones,face enormous challenges in accessing water.

This analytical brief serves as a starting point for dialogue on water security in the United Nations system. Through this brief, UN-Water aims to capture the constantly evolving dimensions of water-related issues, offering a holistic outlook on challenges under the umbrella of water security. It highlights the main challenges to be addressed, the role water security plays in policy agendas and possible options for addressing water security challenges. The paper stresses that water security needs to be included in the formulation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Khulna, the third largest metropolitan city (46 km) of Bangladesh, is vulnerable to climate change and unplanned urbanization process. The city has been identified as one of the 15 most climate change vulnerable cities of the world. This study was conducted to assess how urban and peri-urban residents of Khulna have been affected by the Mayur River through its use and abuse, and to explore adaptation measures. To complete the study, primary data was collected through field surveys, stakeholders' consultation, focused group discussion, key informantinterview and water quality analysis.

Jordan is dominated by arid climate with limited arable land and water resources. This study focuses on crop production and water resources under trends of anticipated climate change and population growth to analyse how these affect water and food security in the country. It finds that recession of irrigated areas led to lesser food production and food security. Results indicate that climate change and population growth increase and intensify problems of water scarcity and food insecurity.

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) recently implemented climate risk management studies in seven countries. This report, commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery, gives a detailed summary of efforts in a Niger wetland environment to conduct one such study, incorporating climate change with three key sectors: agriculture, livestock and water resources.

The Agroforestry for Livelihoods of Smallholder farmers in Northwestern Viet Nam project (2011-2016) focuses on agroforestry trials on farms in the northwestern mountainous region of the country. The objective of the study was to make an inventory of the current upland farming systems and identify key strengths and weaknesses of each system, including economic efficiency. The farming system diagnosis was based on participatory assessments and focus group discussions and in- depth interviews with 45 project ‘farmer co-operators’ in 17 villages in Yen Bai, Son La and Dien Bien provinces.

Land degradation is a serious problem in Sub-Saharan Africa, where up to two-thirds of the productive land area is reported to be degraded to some extent.  Local communities suffer the most from the degradation of their land and they are therefore fundamental to the widespread adoption of sustainable land management (SLM) techniques.

Based on worldwide experience and encouraging evidence from country pilots in African countries such as Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania,and Uganda, this new report suggests a series of ten steps that may help to revolutionise agricultural production and eradicate poverty in Africa. These steps include improving tenure security over individual and communal lands, increasing land access and tenure for poor and vulnerable families, resolving land disputes, managing better public land, and increasing efficiency and transparency in land administration services.