AMMAN — With the
onset of spring and the end of the rainy season, there have been mixed opinions
regarding the current water situation in Jordan and demands from water experts
to concerned authorities to give more attention to the water sector.
اضافة اعلان
Water experts
interviewed by
Jordan News agreed that the current water storage in dams
is relatively good but that the government should set up sustainable
developmental projects to preserve existing water resources and seek new ones.
Water expert Muna
Hendieh told
Jordan News that the Ministry of Water has made substantial
efforts to improve the water per capita, namely with regards to addressing the
issue of water losses through the maintenance and repair of water networks, and
the upcoming implementation of the Red Sea water desalination project.
She said “water
and natural resources that characterize Jordan must be exploited, the
government should find efficient and sustainable means to manage the water
sector and improve relations with neighboring countries to benefit from each
other’s resources and increase the individual’s share”.
Executive Director
of the Islamic Network for Water Resources Development and Management, Marwan
Al-Raggad said the water crisis in Jordan is due to “natural and geopolitical
factors”, adding that water poverty has existed for many years and.
Raggad said that
the concerned authorities are doing their best to solve the water scarcity
issue, noting the satisfactory situation in dams in the northern region of the
country, unlike in the south, where precipitation has been low. “About 99
percent of the citizens have access to water, and that itself is an achievement
despite the water scarcity and the influx of refugees,” said Raggad.
Chairman of
EDAMA’s Board of Directors Dureid Mahasneh told
Jordan News that modern
and advanced projects are required to “address the issue at the roots” and
achieve sustainability of resources.
“Monitoring
rainfall and dams capacity by itself is not enough, if not coupled with
projects that increase water per capita,” he added.
Minister of Water Mohammad
Al-Najjar had said that this summer will not be water safe, noting the
challenges of a low rainfall and a growing population as not being conducive to
any solution in the short run.
The Jordan Valley
Authority said that 91 million cubic meters of water is stored in the country’s
major dams, 32.4 percent of their total capacity.
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