Shafaq News/ Iraq’s water crisis is deepening as reserves dwindle due tosevere drought, poor resource management, and reduced water flows from upstreamcountries. The shrinking Tigris and Euphrates rivers, widespread agriculturalland degradation, and rising pollution levels have exacerbated the crisis,raising concerns over food security and livelihoods nationwide.
A Nation Running Dry
Water specialist Tahseen Al-Moussawi told Shafaq News that Iraq isfacing extreme water stress, despite ranking 24th in a UN report on globalwater scarcity. "There is no real transparency about the country's waterreserves," he warned.
Preliminary figures suggest that Iraq’s water reserves do not exceed 20billion cubic meters, a level Al-Moussawi described as "dangerous."However, the country’s total water consumption—spanning agricultural,industrial, and household use—stands at approximately 48 billion cubic meters,far surpassing available reserves.
Severe drought conditions have caused parts of the Tigris and Euphratesriverbeds to dry up, shrinking marshes and wetlands, killing livestock, andreducing agricultural land. In a recent statement, Ghulam Ishaq, the UNSecretary-General’s Special Envoy for Humanitarian and Development Affairs,revealed that 90% of the Tigris and Euphrates water is now contaminated.
The crisis is also forcing mass displacement. Statistics indicate that37,000 people have migrated from southern Iraq due to climate-related watershortages.
Meanwhile, Nineveh Provincial Council member Mohammed Ahris raisedconcerns about dangerously low water levels at the Mosul Dam, warning thatworsening drought conditions threaten thousands of farming families.
The Mosul Dam, a strategic water storage site, plays a crucial role insustaining the Al-Jazira irrigation project, which covers 240,000 dunams offarmland and supports the production of wheat, barley, potatoes, tomatoes,sunflower seeds, and other crops. However, as Deputy Agriculture Minister MahdiAl-Jubouri told Shafaq News, reduced water flows in the Tigris and Euphrateshave already impacted both summer and winter agricultural plans, leading to adecline in cultivated areas.
Iraqi President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid acknowledged the worseningsituation, citing three key drivers: climate change, water mismanagement, andupstream nations restricting flows.
International reports rank Iraq among the five nations most affected byclimate change. A 2022 World Bank report stressed the urgent need for a“greener growth model,” estimating that Iraq will require $233 billion ininvestments by 2040 to address pressing developmental and environmental needs.Meanwhile, Strategic Advocacy for Human Rights estimates that 30% of Iraq’sproductive farmland has been lost in the past three decades.
Key Causes of Water Crisis
According to Al-Moussawi, Iraq's water sources depend heavily onsnowmelt and rainfall in upstream countries such as Turkiye and Iran. However,climate patterns in these regions are shifting dramatically.
“Iraq is experiencing worsening water scarcity, with over 30% lessrainfall expected in upstream basin countries by 2025,” he warned.
While the current rainy season remains ongoing, meteorologist SadiqAttia told Shafaq News that rainfall across Iraq and the Middle East has beenbelow expectations. He remained cautiously optimistic about some precipitationin spring but warned that it would be insufficient to offset severe droughtconditions.
Further complicating the situation, Iraq lacks a formal agreementrequiring upstream nations to release their allocated water shares. Expertswarn that this legal vacuum risks intensifying shortages, worsening pollution,and further devastating downstream communities.
Al-Moussawi emphasized Iraq’s reliance on internal water inflows fromsnowmelt, which, while helpful, remains inadequate. He also highlightedgeopolitical factors that exacerbate the crisis, including, disruptions atSyria’s Tishrin Dam, Turkiye’s reduction of water releases from the Ilisu Daminto the Tigris (from 500 cubic meters per second to just 75 cubic meters persecond), and low precipitation levels across the region.
These factors pose a grave threat to Iraq’s fragile water security.
Push for Sustainable Solutions
To address the crisis, the Iraqi government took many steps. TheMinistry of Water Resources signed a contract in August 2024 with Italy’s HydroNova and Jordan’s Concorde to develop sustainable irrigation systems andmitigate climate-related impacts.
Between 2023 and 2024, Iraq contracted 13,000 modern irrigation systems,irrigating 3.1 million dunams of land with groundwater. Plans are underway toexpand coverage to 4 million dunams.
These advancements have already led to higher wheat production, withyields exceeding one ton per dunam—a significant improvement over the 850 kg perdunam produced in traditionally irrigated areas.
The United Nations in Iraq has also launched the "Water isLife" campaign in collaboration with the Ministry of Water Resources. Theinitiative will unfold in four phases throughout 2025:
1. Raising awareness aboutwater scarcity and climate change effects
2. Identifying key players inwater resource management and promoting cooperation
3. Showcasing ongoing projectsled by the Iraqi government and UN agencies
4. Focusing on futurestrategies, including Iraq’s participation in international forums to securefunding and support
Meanwhile, Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi Al-Jubouri highlightedIraq’s recent adoption of modern irrigation systems to optimize water usage andboost agricultural productivity.
In the Kurdistan Region, Erbil’s Irrigation Directorate is working tochannel water from the Great Zab River to irrigate 80,000 dunams of farmland inShamamak. Additionally, the directorate is overseeing the construction of 33water reservoirs in the green belt surrounding Erbil, with a combined storagecapacity of 18 million cubic meters.
However, budget constraints have slowed progress on these projects."Three reservoirs have been completed, but financial limitations havedelayed the rest," said Rebwar Hussein, director of Erbil’s IrrigationDirectorate.
Despite these initiatives, water expert Al-Moussawi remained critical ofIraq’s progress. "Current solutions are temporary," he argued."Instead of addressing the root causes, these measures have merely evolvedinto long-term plans without concrete action. The government must adopt moreaggressive and sustainable policies to combat climate change anddesertification."