Tunisia fears severe water shortages amid worst drought in 50 years. The country is officially classified below the water poverty line, due to the acute water crisis.
As Tunisia withers under its worst drought in 50 years, experts warn that a combination of climate change and bad resource management could trigger severe drinking water shortages.
Moez Hrizi, an expert in digital delivery and technology for the national organization, announced last Tuesday, that Tunisia has been officially classified below the water poverty line.
El Hrizi added, in a statement to “Shems FM” radio, that Tunisia is facing a severe water issue as a result of a lack of rainfall and an increasing population.
He urged that all state structures and civil society be on full alert in order to find solutions that were more than urgent.
Dams’ Reserves have not exceeded 29%
The water resources available in dams by the end of December 2022, did not exceed 29% of the global storage capacity of these structures.
This situation is the result of seven consecutive years of drought and the lack of policies to rationalise water consumption in a country that is below the threshold of water stress.
The Tunisian Ministry of the Environment views the spread of the drought environment with concern, stating that it has become “a real, palpable, and disturbing reality that must be handled to limit its negative impacts.”
The Ministry stressed that it published on the occasion of the International Day to Combat Desertification and Drought last June that 75% of the national territory is threatened by desertification and that every three years, particularly in the central and southern regions, a dry year is recorded.
The ministry confirmed that it had established a national goal to protect 2,2 million hectares of land from degradation by 2030 through the implementation of sectoral strategies related to forests, conservation of water, soil, and wet areas, development of pastures, resistance to sand intrusion, and sustainable agricultural activities in various regions.
An earlier environment ministry research on the effects of climate change on the economy indicated that Tunisia will experience a significant shortage of grain harvests due to drought, with only one million hectares of cultivated land remaining by 2030.
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