Let’s Find Out How To Manage Water Crisis In MENA Regions

UNICEF reports state that nearly 90% of children in the region live in areas of high or extremely high water stress.

As global temperatures rise and the climate crisis accelerates, the MENA water crisis is expected to worsen and impact economic growth. The World Bank found that climate-related water scarcity could lead to economic losses equaling up to 14% of the region’s GDP over the next 30 years.

To control the situation, technological innovations and advanced water-management systems are helping, the report states. which includes the development of major desalination plants as well as the implementation of sustainable agriculture and water recycling programs.

As mentioned in the report, ahead of the World Economic Forum’s 2023 Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, a few industry leaders shared their thoughts on the MENA water crisis and detailed ongoing efforts to help the region overcome water scarcity in the coming years.

Peter Terium, Chief Executive Officer, ENOWA; Managing Director, Energy, Water, and Food, NEOM, commented, "In NEOM, located in the north-west of Saudi Arabia, underground water has been more and more used for agriculture and irrigation due to the increase in population in the region."

He added that this has led to a drop in the groundwater table and dried up many of the springs in the area, changing the face of the environment. The aquifers no longer have the capability to regenerate themselves due to the water demand, and the open dumping of wastewater on the land has led to pollution of this scarce resource.

"ENOWA, NEOM’s energy and water subsidiary, is creating a circular water system. To realise this, we bring together innovation across the water value chain and beyond.

According to Peter Terium, globally, the average water loss is about 30%. By using innovative technologies, they aim to reduce losses to 3%, which reduces the overall infrastructure and cost of water. With smart monitoring technologies, 100% recycling of wastewater, and the production of clean industrial resources, they are maximising the potential of water use in industry, farming, and rebalancing nature.

With their circular approach, ENOWA is positively impacting NEOM’s flora and fauna, and they also hope to amplify the positive impact across the world.

A report says Gulf Cooperation Council members are taking a multi-faceted approach to address water scarcity. Saudi Arabia's Rabigh 3 Independent Water Plant produces 600,000 cubic metres of desalinated water a day using reverse osmosis.

It can meet the needs of 1 million households and is recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest reverse osmosis desalination plant.

Bahrain EDB focuses on attracting investments and building solutions that have a positive impact on issues like water scarcity, such as Pavilion Water, a water desalination specialist that produces fresh water with zero greenhouse gas emissions.

According to the report, innovative farming is also helping produce more food with less water across the region. UAE-based start-up Smart Acres is a vertical indoor hydroponic farm that, compared to traditional methods, yields 20 times as much food while using a tenth of the land and 90% less water.

Paddy Padmanathan, vice chairman and chief executive officer of ACWA Power, said, "Billions of people around the world lack adequate access to water, a basic need to sustain a healthy life. "The Middle East and North Africa are the worst off in terms of physical water stress, receiving less rainfall than other regions but, yet, having fast-growing, densely populated urban centres that require more water," he added. "Immediately, awareness of the issue needs to be heightened, and consumption needs to be contained at 150 litres per day." But to even supply that low level of consumption, we need to keep innovating.

"We at ACWA Power continue to stretch technology to reduce energy, chemical, and sophisticated consumables consumption by challenging conventional practices, increasing the use of big data, the phenomenal power of computing, advanced analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to reduce the cost of taking salt out of seawater (desalination), and by increasing the utilisation of renewable energy, also simultaneously reducing the carbon footprint of this energy-intensive process to increase the provision of potable water at a progressively lower cost, reducing the impact on climate change."

Majid Al Futtaim Holding stated, "At Majid Al Futtaim, we understand the scale of the issue and have begun addressing it as part of our sustainability strategy." "We developed a clean water investment strategy that focuses on investing in water generation technology, local offsetting, and the development of renewable-powered reverse osmosis desalination plants."

As a diverse business operating across industries, Majid Al Futtaim is present in several sectors that are typically characterised by high water use. Yet the company takes several steps to effectively minimise its water footprint. Majid Al Futtaim Holding

According to the report, Majid Al Futtaim incorporates sustainable water management systems into its building and community development sectors. which includes the use of on-site water treatment technologies and sustainable gardening practices.

 By Sumita Pawar