Facts about water resources and rationing in Egypt
Water efficiency is considered one of the Egyptian National Security issues, the Nile River is the country’s most important water source.
The ancient Egypt culture was built on the sides of the river, the Nile provides Egypt with 95 percent of its water, in 1902, 1906, 1929 and 1959, Cairo signed agreements with the Nile Basin countries that guaranteed 55 billion cubic meters of Nile water per year for Egypt.
Egypt suffers from a water deficit of 30 billion cubic meters; it annually needs at least 90 billion cubic meters of water to cover 90 million citizens’ needs. However, it currently has only 60 billion cubic meters, of which 55.5 billion cubic meters come from the Nile and just under five billion cubic meters come from non-renewable subterranean water in the deserts.
Further decrease in Egypt's water resources is expected amid the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which could have a negative impact on Egypt’s Nile water share.
Read the full article by Rehab Ismail via Egypt Today.
[Photo by Marwa Morgan | Flickr]
