At the center of the 8th Cairo Water Week, Minister of Water and Irrigation in Jordan Raed Abu Saud articulated an ambitious “Water Vision” leading into discussions on the United Nations Conference on Water 2026. Speaking to a group that included government officials, development partners, and private companies, Abu Saud stressed that Jordan is shifting from just reacting to water shortages to planning for better water management and conservation.
The minister identified two notable figures from the session: 98 participants were working to increase access to high-quality water services, while 68 were working to improve sanitation, creating a succinct picture of coordination across the Arab region. Abu Saud highlighted those efforts around three pillars: supply diversification, smarter water use in agriculture, and cooperative regional data/information.
What distinguishes Jordan’s plan is its scope. Officials report that ongoing water projects in the country will enhance the country’s drinking and agricultural water capacity by an estimated 200–250 million cubic meters, while total long-term programs in the pipeline have investment totals around JD 2.4 billion. If the estimated 200–250 million cubic meters of water is realized, it could potentially meet the annual domestic needs of approximately 6.8–8.6 million people, assuming an average usage of about 80 liters per person per day. This preliminary calculation highlights the substantial potential for the overall infrastructure pipeline to revolutionize water services.
Jordan’s urgency is not rhetorical. The kingdom ranks as one of the most water-scarce nations on the globe: the available amount of water per person is well below any global scarcity threshold—international figures cite per capita renewable water supply in the low triple digits, or (by some estimates) even lower. This important situation explains why Jordan is promoting the “water footprint” method for farming—by using existing programs to support low-water use in production and trade—and why there is a focus on accurate water tracking and getting the private sector involved in policy decisions.
Abu Saud stated that adapting to the impacts of climate change will require not only dams and pipes but also reliable data, careful planning, and market-based incentives to reward water-efficient actions. From cross-border trade of low-water-use crops to financing for modern irrigation methods, Jordan’s message in Cairo was an invitation: the region can no longer think about water as simply another utility—it is a shared economic asset and a climate-sensitive security issue.
As the UN 2026 conference approaches, Jordan’s presentation represents both a warning and a suggestion: scarcity calls for speed, creativity, and collaboration, and, importantly, investment that helps to convert ambition into actual drops in the bucket.
