In Ouled-Bessem, Algeria, treated wastewater from a local treatment plant is being used for supplemental irrigation of cereal crops, increasing crop yields and incomes. In Farafra Oasis, Egypt, traditional practices in managing groundwater are being documented and assessed to help local communities develop an integrated, participatory water management plan for recently reclaimed land. In Jordan, treated greywater (water collected from laundry tubs, sinks, and showers) from dorms at Mu’tah University is being reused for local agriculture. In Rashaya Casa, Lebanon, greywater treatment kits are being installed in 74 households to demonstrate the benefits and safety of irrigating crops with greywater. In Tafilalet, Morocco, reservoir-based drip irrigation — a system using saline water instead of fresh water — is being tested to validate equipment performance, uniformity of watering, effect on soil salinity, crop tolerance, and yields. In Yemen, researchers are testing refinements to the traditional practice of using mosque greywater to improve crop yields and conserve groundwater, with the goal of influencing national water policies.

These research projects are examples of the impact of IDRC’s WaDImena initiative, a five-year (2004–2009) intraregional, multidonor program that is supporting and promoting water demand management (WDM) approaches in the increasingly water-scarce countries of the Middle East and North Africa, or MENA. (Hence the name “WaDImena”; “wadi” is Arabic for stream.) WaDImena members are Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, Syria, and Yemen.

A Fresh Perspective on Fresh Water

“WDM challenges the perception that the solution to the region’s water crisis is to find more sources of water,” explains Lorra Thompson, WaDImena's  project coordinator. “The truth is that the amount of fresh water that can be added to existing supplies is limited, and extracting it is usually expensive and ecologically harmful. So demand needs to be managed.”

WDM includes using treated greywater instead of fresh water to irrigate crops; changing the timing of water use to avoid losses, for example,  by irrigating at night when less evaporation occurs; and using more efficient technologies such as drip irrigation.

MENA is already one of the world’s most arid regions, and because national populations are growing rapidly, the amount of fresh water available per person is declining. Jordan’s 5.2 million people, for example, each have an average of 200 cubic metres of water available — less than half the 500-cubic-metre threshold below which mere survival becomes difficult.

The Challenges of Change

IDRC has been supporting WDM projects in MENA countries since the early 1990s. Partly because of these projects, WDM has begun to influence government policy, especially in Jordan. By helping MENA countries create and share WDM tools, techniques, and strategies, WaDImena aims to increase and accelerate this influence so that severe water scarcities do not hamper development and increase poverty.

But WaDImena faces a considerable challenge: the need for greater political support for WDM.

“Managing water demand isn’t necessarily a top priority for governments,” explains Thompson. “In fact, sometimes policy can run counter to WDM principles. For example, governments may support growing rice rather than tomatoes because rice has a higher export market value, although it consumes far more irrigation water than tomatoes.”

WaDImena is countering the government policy gap by funding eight WDM research projects and by sponsoring WDM workshops, conferences, and exchanges that allow members of the WDM community to learn from and support one another.

Building WDM Momentum

“The potential is enormous,” says Thompson. “WaDImena is building a huge network of WDM practitioners, including many young professionals who will be the next generation of decision-makers and officials in water ministries. These are people who know WDM and are familiar with the research results. They are the future.”

For More Information

WaDImena website

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