Arab countries must address water security or risk instability
With parts of the region hit by political and economic uncertainty, Hazim el-Naser, the founder of Middle East Water Forum, said prosperity, poverty and employment rates are directly related to the average share of water an Arab citizen gets a year, which he described as one of the world's lowest.
Al Jazeera spoke to el-Naser, who is also Jordan's former water and irrigation minister, about the importance of water security in the Middle East, the threats faced by some of the countries in the region and what needs to be done to tackle the problem. The interview below has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Al Jazeera: What's the situation today in terms of water resources and water consumption in the Arab region, and what does the future look like?
Hazim el-Naser: With a population of about 420 million people, the Arab region is the world's poorest in terms of water scarcity and percentage of water per individual - the average percentage share of water for an Arab individual does not exceed 600 cubic metres per year. Countries like Jordan, Palestine and Yemen are the poorest, with an average that does not exceed 200 cubic metres per year.
The real issue is that water scarcity is directly related to poverty and economic growth. The United Nations says 1,000 cubic metres are the minimum needed in a year for an individual in terms of drinking water, food production and participation in economic activities. This means that if the average is smaller - like in many Arab states - you will have to import food and suffer from poverty and high unemployment.
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