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The MEED MENA Water Forum today opened its doors for a three-day conference at the Sofitel Hotel in Abu Dhabi, where speakers and participants gathered to explore the challenges involved with developing sustainable water strategies in the region.
Participants included the President of the Arab Water Council and former Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation in Egypt, Dr. Mahmoud Abu-Zeid, Dr. Taha Ouarda, Professor and Head of the Institute for Water and Environment, iWATER, at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, and Alan Thompson, Managing Director of the Abu Dhabi Sewage Services Network, which is currently working on the largest sewage projects in the region.
Demand for water is growing in line with population trends in the region, and this is testing one of the world’s most water deprived regions, experts said, adding that the capacity of Middle East water suppliers to meet soaring demand is taking a double trajectory as GCC nations press ahead with their water projects and technologies while the rest of the region struggles, mainly due to financial constraints.
"The Middle East is a water scarce region," said the Arab Water Council President, adding that the council is coordinating policies at the regional level.
Iyad Al-Qassir, Advisor at the Water Authority of Jordan, said that Jordan’s water demand this summer will be more than 20% above last year’s level, while the PPP Unit Director at the Ministry of Finance in Egypt, Atter Ezzat Hannoura, said that developing a sustainable water strategy is just behind Egypt’s emergency power plan on the list of the Egyptian government’s priorities.
Al-Qassir added that Jordan is planning to implement projects on a large scale to use Treated Sewage Effluent, TSE, in order to meet water demand for agriculture, which currently accounts for two thirds of domestic water use.
Most of Jordan’s water currently comes from groundwater reserves, which are steadily depleting, especially with the influx of Syrian refugees to the country over the past three years. "There is an extra 40% demand on water with the refugees in Jordan, and water demand is increasing 20% each year," he said.
Al-Qassir said that Jordan was still moving forward with the long-planned Red Sea-Dead Sea conveyance link scheme, which is envisaged to provide sea water for desalination.
"The project is not just important for Jordan, but for the whole region," said Al-Qassir. "We are looking for as much support and as many partners as we can to move forward with the projects.
The MENA Water Forum continues with presentations from MEED on a regional desalination overview, looking at demand forecasts and planned projects in the region’s main desalination markets, including the GCC and Egypt, as well as the development of a water budget for the UAE for its long-term water security by the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology.
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