Iraq
Iraq's Minister of Water Resources Aoun Diab speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the 8th edition of Sulaimani forum. Photo: Screengrab/Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq has included in the federal budget funding for nearly a dozen dams to be built in the Kurdistan Region, according to the water resources minister.
“There are dedicated dams in the Kurdistan Region, perhaps exceeding ten dams, for energy generation and water retention purposes,” Iraq's Minister of Water Resources Aoun Diab told Rudaw’s Mushtaq Ramadhan on the sidelines of the Sulaimani Forum.
“These dams are planned for and are included in our programs within the federal budget. Their studies and designs are being prepared, and then they will be implemented,” he said, adding that the federal and regional governments have good coordination on the issue of water.
Water levels in the Euphrates and Tigris rivers - vital waterways shared by Iraq, Syria, and Turkey - have dropped considerably in recent years and in 2022 Iraq’s Ministry of Water Resources predicted that unless urgent action is taken, these two rivers will be dry by 2040.
Iraq is among the nations most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including water and food insecurity. The United Nations Environment Program has warned that water shortages threaten the long-term stability of Iraq’s agriculture and industry.
Diab said that heavy rains this spring that filled dams and reservoirs have improved the situation.
Iraq’s water problems are exacerbated by Turkish and Iranian damming of rivers that flow into Iraq. The water resources minister said in an interview with Rudaw in February that per an agreement with Ankara, the Turkish government is “required to release 500 cubic metres of water per second as a minimum and of this 260 cubic metres should reach Iraq.”
The minister charged that the flow of water from Turkey to Iraq has dramatically decreased in recent years, especially in 2022 when Iraq only received 180 cubic metres of water per second.
Iraqi and Turkish authorities have held several meetings regarding water, but have not reached any concrete agreements. The matter is expected to be on the agenda again when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visits Baghdad and Erbil next week.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani said last year that his government would implement measures to regulate water consumption and waste.
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