Middle East/ North Africa region faces water challenge

By Robert Hamilton
For Al-Shorfa.com
2008-05-23

The Middle East/North Africa region

The World Bank has warned that governments in the Middle East and North Africa should start to invest in the water industry now in order to avoid severe shortages in the future. According to water specialists, global water shortages are already threatening economic growth as well as geo-political stability.

"Many countries are living on a cushion," says Julia Bucknall, lead natural resources specialist at the World Bank and author of a recent report into water shortages across the MENA region. "The problem is that cushion is disappearing.”

The World Bank estimates a 20 percent decline in water precipitation across the Middle East, and its effects will be seen differently in different parts of the region. A lack of water in Morocco, Algeria and Egypt is being blamed for a 1 percent decline in gross national product, while in Iran that figure is 3 percent.

Declining water level of the Dead Sea

The report blames the changes in climate and the growth of the population as two of the biggest reasons for declining water resources. The World Bank estimates a 20 percent decline in water precipitation across the Middle East, and its effects will be seen differently in different parts of the region.

"The real problem is not water resource quality, it is the way it's used for agriculture and food production," says Bucknall. MENA governments’ priorities should focus on reducing water usage rather than boosting supply.

This is the most water-scarce region in the world. The average water availability per person around the world is 7,000 cubic meters per person, per year. In the MENA region this figure is just 1,200 cubic meters.

One half of the region's population lives under conditions of water stress. Moreover, with the population expected to grow from around 300 million today to around 500 million in 2025, per capita availability is expected to halve by 2050.

Leaking pipes account for up to 50 percent loss of water in some parts of the region, while it is considered unusual in Europe if there is leakage of 30 percent.

Measures are at least being taken, and the World Bank reports that the MENA region is using more of its renewable water resources than any other region. Approximately 80 percent of total renewable water resources are used by the region, compared to 30 percent in South Asia and then 10 percent in Western Europe. This isn't helped, however, by the fact the Middle East has 5 percent of the world population but only 1 percent of the world's renewable water resources.

Evidence is also emerging of changing attitudes to water conservation within the region, and the GCC countries are engaged in discussing a regional water strategy. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has committed €1.6 billion to help deal with the kingdom's ageing water infrastructure. Bucknall praises the UAE's decision to form the Arab Water Council to help tackle the problem.

Oil-rich countries are investing money to solve the problem, and in the MENA countries for which data are available, governments are spending between one and 3.6 percent of GDP on the water sector. These figures exclude the significant private investment being made, while water programmes have represented 20 to 30 percent of government spending in Algeria, Egypt and Yemen in recent years. Large expenditures suggest why accountability is so important, and why water investments have strong political dimension.

As the World Bank report suggests, this isn't a severe problem now, but it will be in the future if nothing is done. Oil has long been a reason for countries to go to war in the Middle East – and it is not inconceivable that water could one day provide the same incentive.

Bookmarking

Please comment on this article so that we can improve the experience of viewing this website.