UN: Arab countries are facing problems of water supply and need urgent action

Arab countries face emergency water supply crisis that needs to be coordinated, with projected 50% reduction in per capita water resources by 2050, FAO (United Nations) reported on Thursday for food and agriculture).

FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva told a meeting of Arab States in the Egyptian capital of Cairo that the Middle East and North Africa region was suffering more than any other region of problems of water scarcity, desertification and climate change.

In response, countries in the region need to modernize their irrigation techniques and urgently coordinate their water management strategies.

According to the FAO, per capita fresh water in the region already accounts for only 10% of the world average and agriculture consumes more than 85% of the available resources.

"It's already an urgent problem now," Graziano da Silva said in an interview on the sidelines of the conference.

The meeting, attended by about 20 countries, is the first of its kind in which ministers of water and agriculture participate. It aims to improve coordination between the various government agencies that have often failed in their joint work.

"It is unreasonable that this region does not have good governance in water and land management," said Graziano da Silva.

"In Egypt, there are 32 ministers, and most likely these 32 ministers, there are 30 who take care of the water," he said. "The water is a problem for them and they have no way of coordinating effectively."

Egypt said that it had already started working to improve ministerial coordination, for example by reducing rice growing areas in order to conserve water.

Graziano da Silva said he visited agricultural areas in the Nile Delta, where farmers use centuries-old irrigation methods.

"It is a waste of water.We must act urgently for drip irrigation and other techniques of economy. water, "he said.

The Conference was informed that water scarcity was also leading to the displacement of rural populations and increased dependence of the region on the importation of cheap processed foods, which contributed to higher rates of obesity.