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Enhancing water resources management
in irrigated agriculture to cope with
water scarcity in arid regions
Bakhodir Mirzaev, Shehzad Akram, Liban Ali Yusuf and Abdul Basit Jam, Islamic Development Bank Group
G
lobal water resources are becoming scarce and
are already a source of competition in all sectors
of the economy in the arid regions. Competition
exists between sectors that depend on the same water
sources such as river basins. Rivers and lakes that cross
international boundaries generate competition, as one
country can limit another’s access to the water resource
through over-extraction or pollution. According to the
United Nations World Water Development Report,
1
263
river basins are shared by two or more nations, indicating
that international competition for shared water bodies
could be a serious source of international debate in the
upcoming decades. Competition exists between various
water use sectors and societies — between urban and
rural water users, between hydropower demand and agri-
culture users, between upstream and downstream areas.
Moreover, most current water management systems
undervalue environmental and ecosystem water needs.
The population tends to grow as a geometric progression
in developing countries that face water scarcity problems.
The water sector lacks the infrastructure and institutional
set-ups needed to provide water services and effective water
management. Countries with less than 2,000 m
3
annual
per capita freshwater availability are located in Africa, the
Middle East, and South-East and Central Asia.
The Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB) is a south-
south multilateral development finance institution. It was
established to foster the economic development and social
progress of its member countries and Muslim communities,
individually and collectively in accordance with the princi-
ples of Shari’ah. IDB has a critical milestone in its five-year
programme (2011-2016)
2
to “Enhance cooperation, alliance
and partnership; establishing regional dialogue for facilita-
tion and supporting agreements on management of common
natural resources as well as land and water resources.”
In the water sector, the programme envisages providing
advisory support and technical assistance, leading member
countries’ dialogue on the development of water resources
management planning at river basin scale, and providing
decision-making and financial support. The plan should
include integrated approaches such as knowledge manage-
Global water scarcity
Source: Fischer and Heilig
Greater than 2000 m
3
per person per year
Between 1,000 and 2,000 m
3
per person per year
Less than 1,000 m
3
per person per year
2000
2050
L
iving
L
and