Iraq Water Resources Analysis Under Climate Change
Future-proofing Iraq’s water resources
- Location: Iraq
- Date: 2022
- Client: The World Bank Group
- Project Type: Water resources planning
Understanding strategic water management options for a climate-resilient future
In 2015, Iraq’s 20-year water strategy (SWLRI) had already anticipated a more water insecure future with internal renewable water expected to halve by the year 2035. However, the changing climate is expected to further complicate this outlook, where total freshwater is on track to diminish by one-fifth by 2050. Under this scenario, Iraq will have to cope with one-quarter less water for agriculture, and nearly one-third of irrigated land risks going dry.
In 2022, Hydro Nova was engaged by the World Bank to assist the Iraqi Government to assess climate change-driven impacts on the water sector and identify best options for aligning the current national strategy towards adaptation and resilience against climate- induced water risks.
Services Provided
Method for water sector climate assessment
Our role involved developing an interactive and scalable methodology for Iraq to assess the climate risk of the water resources in the country.
National strategies for climate resilience
We gave an analytical perspective of Iraq’s land and water resource management strategic options as a contribution towards the preparation of a comprehensive Climate Change Development Report of Iraq.
Recommendations for climate-proofing
Our climate team recommended ways to re-align the Land and Water Resource Strategy (SWLRI) to achieve adaptation and resilience against climate- induced water risks
