Middle East and North Africa
Sector Issues
With scarce water and limited arable land the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is
accustomed to dealing with environmental stress since its early civilizations. However the
environmental challenges in modern times have accelerated, posing risks for the standards of living of
future generations and raising the costs of mitigating negative environmental impacts. Despite
significant and steady awareness and improvements over the past decade, the region is threatened by
declining per capita water resources, loss of arable land, pollution-related health problems,
deteriorating coastal zones and vulnerable marine resources.
The economic costs of environmental degradation are high. According to World Bank studies they vary
from 2.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in Tunisia, to as high as 7.1 percent of GDP in
Iran. This high cost of environmental degradation spills into public finances, household budgets, the
competitiveness of the economy, and inter-generational equity. At current rates of mining and
degradation, many of the existing resources will not be available in the future.
Environmental stresses will increase due to climate change. MENA is one of the regions most vulnerable
to warming, reduced precipitation and rise in sea levels. Water scarcity (the highest in the world) will
increase, climate-sensitive agriculture will be affected, urban coastal areas will become more vulnerable
to flooding, and competition for scarcer resources could escalate violence and political turmoil even
beyond the region’s boundaries.
Water resources will become increasingly scarcer. Annual renewable water resources per capita are
expected to fall from 1997 levels of 1,045 m3/yr to 740 m3/yr by 2015. Despite growing urban
populations, an average of 88 percent of MENA's water resources are allocated to the agriculture sector,
with only seven percent going toward domestic consumption. As urban and industrial consumption
increases with standards of living, less water will be available for irrigation. Water scarcity is aggravated
by increased degradation of water quality, which primarily affects the region's poor.
Degradation of arable land continues. Unsustainable agriculture and pasture practices due to weak
property rights coupled with population growth threaten the more marginal lands with lower
productivity and desertification.
Pollution-related health problems, particularly in urban and industrial centers, are another
challenge. The causes include open municipal waste dumps; the use of leaded gasoline in an aging and
poorly maintained vehicle fleet; the inefficient use of fossil fuels for power generation; and particulate
and sulfur-oxide emissions from industry. Hazardous waste and Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs),
such as those from obsolete pesticides, continue to pose a challenge in the region.
Marine resources, including fisheries, are an important generator of income. But the fishery is being
overexploited by competing fleets in the face of weak enforcement and regulation. Degradation of
critical habitats by pollution and other kinds of stress compound the problems and put in jeopardy the
wellbeing of vulnerable coastal communities.
Coastal zones continue to deteriorate. Concentration of populations along coastal zones from migration
and urbanization coupled with unregulated development adds to sources of untreated pollution and
damage the scarce natural habitats that remain.
Climate change will compound those effects. Water run off in MENA is projected to drop by 20% to 30%
in most of MENA by 2050. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Fourth Assessment
Report estimates an increase in temperature of up to two degrees in the next 15-20 years and of over
four degrees by the end of the century (the increase is higher for faster emission scenarios)