Water scarcity prospects in Egypt 2000-2050

The challenges faced by many countries in their efforts for economic and social development are usually related to water. Population increase on the one hand and water shortages and quality deterioration on the other are among the problems which require greater attention and action. Therefore, immediate measures should be endorsed and actions should be taken to mitigate the serious destructive impact of water shortages and deterioration of water quality. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) is recognized as a process that can assist countries in their endeavor to deal with water issues in a cost-effective and sustainable way. In this regard, all endeavours and activities pertaining to water issues and their eventual foreseen crisis in Egypt have revealed a strong emphasis on the urgent need to formulate a comprehensive national water resources plan to be endorsed into the twenty first century. Egypt has been well acquainted with pressing water related problems and the various challenges of the 21st century. During the past two decades, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation (MWRI) has developed water policies such as Water Master Plan (1981) and Water Security projects (1993) to define guidelines of management of water resources (both water supply and demands) for short and long terms in Egypt. The current National Water Resources Plan (NWRP) which is being developed now, utilizes an integrated management approach to develop the future national water policy up to the year 2017. Its main objective is: "To develop the National Water Resources Plan that describes how Egypt will safeguard its water resources in the future, both with respect to quantity and quality, and how it will use these resources in the best way from a socio-economic and environmental point of view".