Jordan celebrated World Water Day on March 22 while it continues to face several challenges that have made it one of the world's poorest water countries.
Accelerated population growth brought on by the influx of refugees, the detrimental effects of climate change, and the increase in water demand propelled by the Kingdom's progress toward economic and social development have all exacerbated these problems over time.
Therefore, a new long-term water strategy has been prepared, which will serve as a road map for water resources planning and management, with a planning horizon of 2040.
Based on prior experience and tacit knowledge, some new measures that are aligned with the economic vision must be incorporated into this strategy.
The first is to establish a multi-criteria decision-making platform to allow for the simulation of water scenarios, prepare sectoral water budgets, assess the volume of water demand and available quantities, monitor water resources and their uses, and contribute to the establishment of clear principles for allocating water between competing sectors and uses (agricultural, industrial, and domestic) in the short, medium, and long term.
The planning of new water resources to serve the new city, which will be located 40 kilometers from Amman, is an important demonstration of the need to go forward with these plans to secure water resources for future similar initiatives in Jordan.
The water sector should also increase its resilience to manage emergencies and continue water services provision in face of any unforeseen conditions or disruption (as happened previously at the beginning of the Syrian crisis in 2011, with the influx of more than one million Syrians to Jordan and the partial stoppage of services as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020).
This will be achieved by building on previous lessons learned, researching all risks that may disrupt the water supply value chain, conducting periodic risk planning with the participation of all stakeholders, and including critical water facilities in the risk register.
In addition to enhancing strategic water reservoir capacity to meet incremental operating needs and problems, investing in early warning and response systems, and integrating alternative water resources into the envisaged national water conveyor system.
Additionally, to improve its financial position, the water sector would benefit from building strategic partnerships with experienced international companies to restructure the Water Authority of Jordan and government-owned water companies and reduce their financial losses, which stood at 400 million JOD in 2022.
It would also help to recover operational costs and transform them into agile service providers working under modern management approaches and utilizing smart technology applications. Introducing an e-platform for water subsidies similar to the one applied for the electricity subsidy will contribute to the delivery of targeted financial support to those who deserve it based on household income.
Furthermore, comparing the costs of new water and wastewater subscriptions to the capital costs of implementing wells, networks, stations, and other basic facilities, is important to ensure recovery of the actual costs to relieve the general budget from financial burdens.
An important pillar of the public sector modernization plan is to improve services provided to Jordanians. The Ministry of Water and Irrigation must develop regulatory tools and skills to publish quality informative analysis and monitoring reports on the performance of the three water companies (Miyahuna, Yarmouk, and South-Aqaba), whose assets are owned by the government, in addition to forcing good governance principles. This eliminates the need for the establishment of an independent water regulator, as regulatory bodies in other sectors (electricity and communications) aim to encourage foreign investments and private-sector financing to build infrastructure, operate and provide high-quality services while earning a fair return on investment.
Finally, an economic model must be developed to quantify the macroeconomic benefits of applying the new strategy, such as GDP contribution, direct and indirect job creation, pollution reduction, and compliance with local and global climate change targets.
The model would also evaluate new water resources and asset renewal capital costs, in addition to operating costs, while taking into account social aspects via a participatory approach that includes all stakeholders in the decision-making process, as well as adopting techniques such as exploratory and collaborative surveys and pilot projects that aid in the efficient and equitable use of water.
In conclusion, it must be emphasized that the water sector strategy is a living document that can be modified and redirected according to the reality of the situation, as it is very difficult to predict all the internal and external elements and influences that will govern it until the year 2040.
The next step is to start preparing detailed project schedules and an implementation plan for this strategy with clear implementation responsibilities, durations, costs, key performance indicators, and risks by the time periods of the executive program for the Economic Modernization Vision.
Raising awareness and increasing the capacity of all water sector staff to implement this plan, and managing the change process in a systematic manner are crucial factors for success.
*Iyad Dahiyat is the former secretary general of the Water Authority of Jordan and the Ministry of Water and Irrigation from 2016 to 2019
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