Remarkable Strategic Plans and Measures to Support the Water Sector
Today, the entire world commemorates the International Water Day, which is celebrated on the 22nd of March of each year, and which highlights the importance of fresh drinking water, especially in light of the fact that more than two billion people around the world are deprived of it. This day also urges the countries of the world to take the necessary actions to address the global water crisis, emphasizing the need to support Goal No. 6 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which stipulates the need to address the issue of water availability and sanitation facilities for all by 2030.
The world's water resources face a series of challenges, starting from the scarcity of fresh water sources, the increasing demand for water, the poor management of water resources, and not ending with the phenomenon of climate change. This has led countries all over the world to place these challenges at the forefront of their national and regional priorities, and to exert extra efforts to ensure that the requirements of sustainable development are met.
On the local level, the Permanent Committee for Water Resources has proposed policies and strategies related to water resources, and approved plans, programs and projects related to their management and development. In addition, it has carried out important initiatives related to reinforcing water security and preserving underground water reservoirs in the country. In addition to these significant achievements, it has also prepared the National Water Strategy, which brought forth many challenges and presented many solutions, initiatives and performance indicators, while adopting a long-term strategic view that extends to the year 2030, which is made possible through an integrated and sustainable management system of all water resources.
During the past years, Kahramaa succeeded in meeting the increasing demand for water in the country, despite an annual increase in water consumption amounting to an approximate 8% during the past twenty years. The highest consumption rate in 2020 equaled 438 million gallons per day, while the production capacity reached 476 million gallons per day, and it is estimated that the total production capacity will reach 536 million gallons per day in the second quarter of 2021 (an increase of 13% over 2020) which will ensure that future demands over water will be safely met up until 2025.
Kahramaa has achieved its strategic goals by consolidating the water security in the state, increasing the capacity of the strategic water reserve, and raising the capacity of the water system to enable it to cope with severe emergencies, as the storage capacity was increased from 1,000 to 2,400 million gallons, creating an increase of 140% in Kahramaa’s drinking water reserves.
