Countries in the Middle East and North Africa are poised to gain from annual economic benefits of US$4.9 billion (Dh17.99bn) if they can find a way to raise $79bn needed to provide full access to drinking water, a new study shows.
The good news is access to funding is getting easier as banks earmark billions of dollars for environmental investments.
Clean water has never been easy to come by in the arid Middle East. Much of it is produced through desalination at significant environmental and economic cost, or effectively imported through purchases of agricultural produce from other countries.
Maplecroft, a risk analysis and mapping firm, rates all six GCC states as having levels of access to water that pose "extreme risk" to populations and business operations.
A study from HSBC estimates providing universal access to potable water in the Bric (Brazil, Russia, India and China) nations alone would cost about $725bn but would add $125bn to their combined annual GDP, equivalent to about 1 per cent in additional economic growth.
"We're thinking about climate change as a real factor, not a future threat. The way that climate change is expressed is through changes in water," says Nick Robins, the head of HSBC's climate centre.
"It's not just a project for the future … that would be challenging enough, but with the disruptive factor of climate change this could be really quite serious for the global economy."
The bank calculates the world economy would receive a boost through the potential reduction in days off work or school lost to illness from water-borne diseases, ultimately leading to higher productivity among workers.
A 2007 report from the World Bank estimated that pollution of the Middle East and North Africa region's already scarce water resources costs between 0.5 to 2.5 per cent of GDP annually. With industrial use of water increasing rapidly in the region as a result of high levels of economic growth, those pressures are likely to intensify.
Access to finance for water-related investments is becoming easier as global lenders announce green initiatives targeting the water sector.
As growth forecasts slide across emerging markets, banks worldwide are pledging billions of dollars for environmental investments - as much a means of bolstering their environmental credentials as ensuring future profitability.
Although the sums represent a small fraction of total lending, banks are keen not to be outdone. Last month, Goldman Sachs earmarked $40bn over a 10-year period for investment in environmental initiatives. In response, Bank of America Merrill Lynch pledged $50bn over the same time period soon after.
HSBC launched a $100m, five-year water programme this month, with a focus on cleaning water supplies in river basins including the Ganges, Nile and Indus rivers.
The programme is part of the bank's philanthropic efforts and does not seek to generate profits, Mr Robins said.
The costs of allowing strains on existing water supplies to intensify present a simple economic rationale for businesses to invest in water, Mr Robins adds.
"In the business world, unless you invest your assets base, they'll depreciate. The same applies to the environmental asset base," he says.
"Water is a key natural resource that's part of our natural capital. In that strategic context we really need to maintain and enhance our water resource base to deliver the growth in incomes."
ghunter@thenational.ae
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last-16 second leg
Paris Saint-Germain (1) v Borussia Dortmund (2)
Kick-off: Midnight, Thursday, March 12
Stadium: Parc des Princes
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Sting & Shaggy
44/876
(Interscope)
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Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
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Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
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The specs: 2019 BMW i8 Roadster
Price, base: Dh708,750
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Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power: 374hp (total)
Torque: 570Nm (total)
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Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
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How to get there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
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Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
