April 2008 - Are countries in MENA region able to adapt their current water management practices to meet these combined challenges: - As the region’s economies and population structures change over the next few decades, demands for water supply and irrigation services will change accordingly;
- Rainfall patterns are predicted to shift as a result of climate change;
- Per capita water availability will fall by half by 2050?
The World Bank report "Making the Most of Scarcity: Accountability for Better Water Management Results in the Middle East and North Africa" tries to answer the question. The report also shows how sector reform involves cropping choices, and has to consider multisectoral aspects of water management and demand a large paddle of partners and citizens.  Increasing scarcity will force the region to narrow water uses Across the region, agriculture, which consumes more than 85% of the region’s water, is using water and capital investment inefficiently. In certain countires, irrigation infrastructures are not developed enough to use stocked water. In other cases, including Morocco during the drought years, countries do not possess the water resources necessary for properly using their infrastructure. In nearly all cases, irrigated agriculture does not generate the potential yields. These problems pose challenges everywhere in the world, but in the case of the shortages being experienced in the MENA region, the consequences are more severe. More than half of the countries in the region use more water than what they have in available renewable resources but this situation can not continue indefinitely. Groundwater resources will soon be depleted and the irrigation services in certain irrigated areas will become less reliable. Additionally, the social impacts of this situation must be considered and efforts must be made to mitigate potential consequences. This involves the necessity of transitioning towards an active water conservation policy by reducing the overall consumption of water rather than waiting for this reduction to happen on its own through the depletion of the water resources. According to the report, MENA countries have to use the water for the things that generate the highest amount of money and employment rather than for crops like wheat that are more cheaply and easily grown elsewhere. The region, with its abundant sun, would do well to concentrate on such cash crops as grapes, tomatoes, melons, and strawberries and increase trade with Europe, she says. The region has to change water policies Some countries policies encourage inefficient land use, overuse of nonrenewable water resources, pollution, ecological damage, and poorly maintained infrastructure. Making difficult policy choices now will allow water to continue to provide services, livelihoods, jobs and environmental benefits for the future. Many of the answers to the region’s water problems rest on changes to non-water policies, such as agricultural price supports that keep some crops artificially profitable, or energy subsidies that make pumping water from aquifers deep underground artificially cheap. Despite problems, most countries made progress Many are investing in technology such as sophisticated irrigation systems and sanitation, especially in urban zones. Some countries have made significant progress in policy making to manage water demand. Several countries throughout the region have made investments in technology through modern irrigation which helps reduce the average amount of water resources needed for crops. In terms of progress in the water provision sector, the region has made technological progress that will benefit other countries. In addition, new technologies in desalinization plants and in groundwater renewal systems will provide new options even for low income countries. The case of Morocco Many countries have also made significant efforts in more rational management of water resources by decentralizing the decision making power in this area or as in the case of Morocco, by also developing public-private partnerships in the arenas of potable water and sanitation as well as in irrigation. From several viewpoints, Morocco is a ‘champion’ in the MENA region. It has distribution establishments for potable water in cities that are among the best managed in the region and has been able to attract the private sector to provide financing and the necessary expertise for managing these services. The elimination of the central government as the main financial entity in the water sector has produced some delays in the development of sanitation as well as for the distribution of potable water services to marginalized populations, particularly in rural areas.
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Morocco has a law for water and modern institutions and more important, Moroccan officials are conscious of the need for a change in policy that would prioritize managing the demand. Additionally, in 2001, His Majesty the King Mohamed VI declared in his speech to the Higher Council of Water and Climate « the time has come for us to radically change our perceptions and our attitudes towards water through managing the demand for this resource and the rationalisation of its consumption. Moreover, it is necessary to follow up on efforts that are engaged to mobilize all the water resources possible. (…) ». However, the problem is already quite serious and the situation risks deteriorating in the future. Morocco « lives under its availability of water » by using non renewable groundwater reserves during the years of low rainfall. But these reserves are almost exhausted. Water consumption needs to be significantly reduced according to the availability of resources which will decrease as a result of climate change. The simple implementation of a policy to manage the demand is necessary- however extremely difficult it may seem because it requires taking more efficient measures in order to use water more efficiently. It is even more difficult to limit the consumption of water, particularly for agriculture in the zones where there is a water deficit.
 Data on Morocco In 1994, only 15% of the rural population had access to drinking water - In 2005, that figure had increased to 56% (Source : MATEE 2004)
In Morocco, the lack of access to water supply and sanitation is estimated to cost society 1.0 to 1.5%of GDP every year :This estimate takes into account child mortality from diarrhea (6,000 deaths of children under age five each year), child sickness from diarrhea, and time spent by caregivers
Estimated total of dam capacity for Morocco in 2005-2006: 16.1 km3
Share of total freshwater resources stored in reservoirs : 55.5% en 2005
Percentage of Population with Access to Improved Water and Basic Sanitation in 2005:
       - Urban water 99 %        - Rural water 56 %        - Urban sanitation 83 %        - Rural sanitation 31 %
·      Area equipped for irrigation in 2000 (thousand hectares) : 1,443  Data on MENA region  Availability of water per inhabitant will be reduced by half by 2050 Around 60% of rivers and streams in the region flow through international borders. The countries in the MENA region consume nearly 80% of their water resources (compared to 2% in Latin America and Sub Saharan Africa. Countries such as Algeria, Egypt and Morocco allocate 20 to 30% of their budget to water. 85% of their water consumption is or agriculture Environmental problems linked to water represent a cost of 0.5 to 2.5% of the annual GNP in many countries in the region.
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Water projects in Morocco
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