Tackling the water challenge
While 5% of the world’s population resides in the Middle East and North Africa, the region has less than 1% of the world’s available water supply but is home to the highest consumers of water in the world.
Despite recent efforts to boost water supply, the demand supply gap continues to widen due to increased economic activity and high population growth. Governments are now taking deliberate measures that combine conservation, supply capacity and operational efficiency in a bid to ensure uninterrupted access to water.
But can these measures guarantee water security for the Middle East region in the long run? How best can utilities and governments leverage advancements in technology to boost supply capacity while supporting conservation efforts?
Utilities Middle East seeks to answer these and more questions by bringing together top government officials, senior water utilities executives and experts as well as members of the academia in its first ever Water Week Forum. The virtual event will be held on from 16th to 18th November 2020 and it is expected to bring together over 500 industry players.
With water demand in the Middle East expected to increase 62% by 2025, investments in the region’s water sector are expected to grow exponentially. $80bn-worth of water and wastewater projects are currently planned or under way across the GCC alone, with projects covering all segments of the water sector. I believe that governments, along with water solutions providers and water researchers hold a key stake in helping to instigate a balance between innovation and regulation to address a looming water crisis in the region. Panellists will explore various steps being taken by stakeholders to drive sustainability and look at what more needs to be done.
Discussions will also centre on how investors can take advantage of the growing opportunities and how they can add value to the region’s water sector.
Solutions providers will also be able to quantify and qualify the benefits of new smart technologies and also examine their abilities to address the current and future needs of utilities and end users. You are all welcome to attend the three day event so we can together tackle the water challenge.