Under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II, an international conference on water demand management opened Sunday at the Dead Sea resort, organized by Ministry of Water and Irrigation in cooperation with the U.S. Agency for International Development USAID Cooperation with the participation of over one thousand water experts from 30 countries.



On the sidelines of the conference, King Abdullah also opened water technology exhibition that displays state-of-the-art technologies of preserving water resources and rationing water consumption including developed software to monitor and control water consumption to benefit from limited water resources. Technology firms from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, U.S. and France will be displaying their items in the exhibition.



The conference, the first of its kind, will address a host of water issues including water recycling, water consumption especially in the agricultural and industrial sectors, opportunities and challenges related to water demand management. About 100 working papers on international water concerns will be presented during the conference, 25 of them by Jordan.



Addressing the opening session, Jordan Minister of Water and Irrigation Hazem Nasser said the conference is especially important because the concern on water scarcity and water shortage is no longer just a " Middle Eastern phenomenon."



The future of water resources around the world is under pressure from population growth, industrial needs, environmental degradation, and rapid urbanization, he said. Water Demand Management is a response to the shrinking supply problem, the Minister said.



Capital investment in developing water resources will amount to $45 billion by 2025 in the region compared to 20 billion at present, Nasser said. The required increase goes beyond the ability of most countries in the region, therefore regional cooperation on water consumption and creating an efficient water sector is greatly needed, he said.



He urged countries neighboring the Kingdom to adopt plans and programs similar to those applied in Jordan to reduce water losses at homes and save about 100 million cubic meters by 2025 and reduce over-pumping of underground waters to save 90 million cubic meters each year.



Speaking a press conference following the opening session, Nasser said Jordan would present a declaration of principles initiative on water demand management to help the world countries adopt these principles and improve water resources management.



According to the International Water Poverty Index, Jordan is among the first ten poorest countries in water resources.



Referring the Red-Dead Sea conveyance pipeline project, Nasser said the project needs international funding and a two-year study. It is a regional project with an international nature and needs 8 years to be established.