Engineering reasearch skills: A Managerial Plan as a Solution to the Chronic Water Shortage - Essay Example

Experts are aware of the urgent necessity to reform water policies to resolve serious water scarcity problems that weaken agricultural production and cause health related predicaments induced by droughts and famines, particularly in water starved nations. The countries in the Middle East by virtue of their locations and geographical coordinates are not as richly endowed by the benevolence of nature as their counterparts in the other temperate and tropical zones of the world, in respect of adequacy of rainfall and thereby to internal water resources.

Like their African brethren, virtually all these countries get categorized as water scarce, in tune with the hydrologists’ specified norm of less than 1,000 cubic meters per capita per year of water consumption. This scarcity of water has been attributed to the absence of water infrastructure, institutional platforms and poor management, coupled with lack of services, commitment and financial support, as suggested by the empirical African experience. Such imbalances in the availability of natural resources are known to have severe impact on the socio-economic development and environmental quality of human life and warrant immediate attention.

Given the fact that quality water in particular, is an essential input for ensuring sustainable agric-industrial development, culture, health, sanitation and safety of its people, the overall endeavor of industrial development and economic growth of any nation needs to be buttressed suitably by concerns of social hygiene and sanitation. Amongst the 30 countries identified as water stressed is Saudi Arabia, an advanced and one of the leading oil producing countries. The country is affected by severe water scarcity owing to its geographic location with low volume of rainfalls and aridity of the desert sands.

This reality has thrown up challenges in reconciling to its sustainable development plans with the nature of its environment. Saudi