The coming water shortage crisis in the Arab states
Regional, Economics, 8/14/2002

Studies and statistics issued by international and Arab organizations and commissions indicate that the Arabs are gradually entering the circle of water shortage. Based on that, unless the situation is dealt with before 2010, the problem will be conducive to conflicts especially with the continued expansion of the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The main reason behind water shortage lies in the way international rivers are shared. Certain countries would not be in an actual water discrepancy if they would have taken their share of the shared international rivers like the ( Euphrates and Tigris), shared between Syria, Iraq and Turkey.

The "Jordan River" which is shared by several countries, is totally used by Israel besides the ground-waters in the West Bank, al-Leitani river and the occupied Syrian Golan heights.

The Egyptian "al-Bank al-Ahli al-Masri" (people's bank) did a study on water in the Arab states, and that study expected most Arab states to face a crisis of water shortage during the 25 coming years. Expectations indicate an increase in the Arab water shortfall that might reach 3.3 billion cubic meters of waters in 2025.

Based on such a drastic condition, the study recommended the need of a joint Arab move to found a water security fund at both the country and Arab levels. In this context the study recommended development of the government's departments in the Arab states working in the areas of water administration and water resources protection from pollution. It also recommended work for reaching legal formula that can support ownership rights of the Arab states to water resources, and holding joint projects between the countries on shared water sources, springs, and sea water desalinization.

The study indicated that the demands for water will increase, not only for potable waters and house use purposes, but also for agricultural and industrial use as well, and therefore there is an urgent need to improve water management process.

The study also warned against the continued decrease of per person share of water annually expected to be in 2025 just 464 cubic meters per year. This is however, less than the international average of the water poverty level per person, estimated at 500 cubic meters per capita annually.

The study recommended that to withstand the water shortfall crisis, awareness programs should be carried out, together with maintaining water sewage networks to reduce water loss; changing the type of cultivated crops to less water consuming agriculture, developing the adopted irrigation systems, embarking on use of modern irrigation systems such as sprinklers, and drawing laws for protecting water from pollution.

Previous Stories:
  Arab water deficiency   (6/1/2002)
  Fund-donors to meet next april over sustained development and water in Africa   (3/26/2002)
  FAO warns of worsening water scarcity in mediterranean   (2/4/2002)
  Delegates at UN meeting stress key role of water, sanitation for sustainable development   (1/31/2002)
  An Arab center for water studies to be opened in Damascus   (11/2/2001)
  $ 35 billion for withstanding water problems in the Arab states   (8/20/2001)
  Arab states to face water deficit if same policy continues   (5/7/2001)
  The waters of Tigris and the Euphrates   (4/4/2001)
  Meetings of water resources ministers of the Nile basin   (3/30/2001)
  The first conference for water used in the Arab states   (3/7/2001)
  Israel and stealing of Arab waters   (3/3/2001)
  The Turkish water projects on the Tigris and Euphrates   (9/11/2000)
  Turkish official calls for settling water disputes with Damascus, Baghdad   (3/20/2000)
  World Water Forum institutes Hassan II prize to foster solutions   (3/18/2000)
  Turkey to invest its waters among the Middle East states   (3/7/2000)

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