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In 1992, the United Nations established March 22 as World Water Day, and each year this day calls on Arab countries to reorganize their positions on the issue of water, which is rightly one of the most serious problems facing the region. .
The Arab world suffers from many problems, for many reasons, first and foremost poor management and the lack of serious and effective strategies to deal with these problems, but when it comes to water, which is the secret of life, we must break.
The figures that monitor the impact of the water crisis in the Arab region are appalling. Global statistics show that the Arab region is one of the poorest countries in the world in terms of water availability, and the share of drinking water per capita has declined in recent decades.
The Arab water security strategy leads to a chilling conclusion, namely that if the situation of water and agriculture in the Arab region continues as it is, and without considering the potential effects of change global climate, it is expected that the Arab region will be able to meet only 24% of its food needs. It is known that the Arab region imports about 65% of its wheat needs annually.
Like many Arab issues that are raised, regional efforts in this regard are limited to the existence of regional institutions that no one feels, and do not have binding status, and that what comes out of artistic works remains. ink on paper, does the Arab citizen feel that there is an entity called the Arab Water Council or is there a strategy regarding Arab water security.
On this world occasion of World Water Day, we show the reality of the water situation in the Arab region, by answering a series of questions, in order to alert the Arab citizen to the seriousness of the problem, and to inform him that there is a duty to do, in order to preserve this scarce resource, which will increase Demand in 2040 will increase by 50%, while energy demand will increase in the same year by only about 25% , which reflects the importance of water in the next step.
Iraq, Somalia, Comoros and Djibouti are in a state of water stress (Getty Images)-
What are the manifestations of the water crisis in the Arab region?
The Arab region is located in the belt of arid and arid lands, and there is an imbalance between water supply and demand in the region; In terms of supply, the average share of water per capita represents 10% of the world average, and demand is constantly increasing, due to the high rate of population growth, which is 2% per year, i.e. double of the average rate of increase in the world’s population.
As for the quantities of water available in the Arab region, the statistics of the Unified Arab Report for the year 2020, estimated at about 274 billion cubic meters of surface water, coming from internal rivers, or from shared rivers that come from outside the region, and available water from underground sources and desalination is estimated at around 62 billion cubic meters, while the annual use of renewable water in the Arab region is around 77%.
In light of the status of the Arab countries in terms of water classification, there is only one country that enjoys a state of self-sufficiency among the Arab countries, it is Mauritania, where the share annual water per capita is more than 1700 cubic meters, while there are 4 countries that live in a state of water stress, namely: Iraq, Somalia, Comoros and Djibouti; Where the annual share of water per capita in these countries varies between 1,000 cubic meters and 1,700 cubic meters, and 5 other countries suffer from water scarcity, namely: Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Sudan and Morocco, and the annual per capita water share for these countries is between 500 cubic meters and one thousand cubic meters, and Egypt is expected to face a severe water crisis. in the coming period, in case Ethiopia succeeds in implementing the entire Renaissance Dam project.
As for the description of the severe water poverty in the Arab region, it is experienced by 12 countries: Yemen, Saudi Arabia, the Sultanate of Oman, Kuwait, the Emirates, Qatar, Jordan, Palestine , Libya, Tunisia and Algeria, and the annual per capita share of these countries is less than 500 cubic meters.
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What is the share of water per capita in the Arab region?
Statistics from the Unified Arab Economic Report for the year 2020 indicate that the share of freshwater per capita annually in the Arab region is 800 cubic meters in 2019, and will decrease in 2025 to reach 667 cubic meters, which means that the average per The share of water per capita in 2025 will be 20% of what it was in 1955, when this share per capita was 3,430 cubic meters.
Bearing in mind that the special figures for the year 1955 included the share of the State of South Sudan, which has a large share of freshwater, but its secession in 2011 from the State of Sudan resulted in a declining per capita share of freshwater water in the Arab region.
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How much water is wasted in the Arab region?
Unfortunately, waste in the Arab region is not limited to water, but includes other economic areas, such as food, agricultural crops when collected and packaged, or energy, but in this regard. Regarding water, traditional irrigation methods in the Arab region are one of the main causes of water wastage.
Figures on water use in the Arab region – among different activities – indicate that the agricultural sector accounts for 84% of the water consumed, while domestic consumption accounts for 9% and 7% goes to industrial activities and commercial.
It is estimated that the percentage of waste in water used in agricultural activity varies between 25-30%, due to traditional irrigation systems, as well as irrigation of crops more than once or the increasing rations more than necessary at a time.
There are 87 million people at risk of contracting coronavirus due to the lack of a better source of drinking water in their homes (Getty Images)-
What are the options for Arab countries to deal with water scarcity?
An important and salient point remains when talking about many Arab issues, namely that the issues are approached as if the Arab world were a single entity, or that it could start from a state of unity to implement a plan or strategy, but the reality refers to the practices of the countries, and each country achieves its results, resulting in a high cost at the level of each country, as well as a state of powerlessness in some Arab countries, due to their financial or human poverty.
On the issue of water scarcity, there are proposals, but they remain within the theoretical framework, such as switching to modern irrigation systems, to save water wasted in traditional irrigation systems, and this requires a plan to force farmers to modern irrigation systems, while considering providing the necessary funding to establish such networks, as well as the existence of solutions to overcome the problem of smallholdings, which are not up to modern irrigation systems.
In addition to the use of wastewater treatment, whether in agriculture, industry or self-consumption, but this requires large investments in order to set up different treatment plants according to each activity, as well as a plan to benefit from treated water, where there is coordination between the quantities treated and the quantities to be used, taking into account the nature of the water treated for the different activities; The treated water needed to grow food crops is different from the water needed to irrigate forests, for example.
Desalination of seawater is one of the ways to deal with water scarcity, and it is used to some extent in the Gulf countries, and their financial capacities help them, but there are other Arab countries for which desalination technology can represent a financial crisis, as well as the conditions necessary for the establishment of infrastructure to benefit from desalination.
And missing from the Arab region is the technology needed for the desalination process, locating that technology, developing and producing it locally, and adapting it to be economical when implemented.
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What is the value of the investments needed to address the water scarcity in the Arab region?
Many sectors in the Arab region need investment, but in terms of meeting the growing demand for water in the Arab region during the period 2015-2025, it is estimated at $ 200 billion, needed for infrastructure projects for the water sector.
In light of realistic estimates of Arab government spending in the water sector, it was found to be between 1.7 and 3.6% of GDP, while the percentage of investment required by the sector is estimated at 4.5% of GDP.
In light of the financial crisis in the Arab region, whether oil-producing countries or not, public spending in the water sector may remain the same, unless governments resort to an increase. significant water prices in all sectors, or indebtedness, or privatize the sector.
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What are the effects of the Corona pandemic on the Arab citizen due to the lack of water?
In an ESCWA study titled “The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Water-Scarce Arab Region”, it was reported that there is an expected increase in water consumption of 5%, due to hand washing requirements as a preventative measure. against Corona infection.
And she explains that this will increase the burden on Arab families by around $ 150-250 million per month, and not only that, but there are around 74 million people who are very vulnerable to Corona infection because they do not have the necessary hand washing facilities.
The study also indicated that 87 million people are at risk for corona infection due to the inability to provide a better source of drinking water in their homes, and approximately 26 millions of displaced people are infected with corona due to the lack of water, sanitation and personal hygiene services in the places where the displaced are located.
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