Water resources in the UAE can be classified into two main categories: conventional, such as surface water (including aflaj water systems, springs and dams) and groundwater (shallow and deep aquifers), and non-conventional, such as desalinated water, treated wastewater and cloud seeding.

The source of the Nile is in the Nyungwe Forest in Rwanda. From there, it travels northwards for 6,718km, making it the longest river in the world

Data on surface water quality is both scarce and old. These were mainly on the White and Blue Niles . Water characteristics are subject to the source and the types of soils it runs through . The only possible sources of pollution are from agricultural residues and sugar industry, even though the self-purifying capacity of the natural systems is high

The Nile River is the main shared surface water resource. The management of the Nile basin waters has historically been staggered and sectorial

The Zayandehroud, which means ‘life-giving river’, is the largest river in central Iran and has traditionally been a major source of water for the country

The annual amount of water used in Syria is about 15BCM. This comes from the Euphrates (50 per cent) and the Asi River basins (20 per cent). Of the water usage from the Asi River, 2,230MCM are used for irrigation, 320MCM for domestic purposes and 270MCM for industrial purposes. The total amount of water withdrawn from the Asi River is 2,730MCM

In the year to date, the total agricultural, municipal and industrial water withdrawal has been about 100BCM, of which 41BCM from surface water, 58.8BCM from groundwater (qanats and wells) and 0.2BCM from desalinated water

Internal renewable water resources are estimated at 92BCM, with another 13CM coming in from transboundary resources. Surface run-off represents a total of 97.3km3/year, of which 5.4 km3/year come from draining the aquifers.

Presently, Iraq is contending with two types of water quality issues. One is salinity, the other is the concentration of pollutants in the water related to municipal, industrial and agricultural activities that introduce return flows into freshwater sources.

Water supply and food security will pose a major challenge in the coming years, which many government officials refer to as a human security issue. Both the country’s natural climatic situation and the government policies in managing its limited water resources over the past few decades have exacerbated this challenge.