SouthWest Asia's Water Crisis Essay Example

It is no surprise that it is hot in the Middle East. According to Earth Observatory Nasa, “Local ground stations recorded temperatures that climbed above the 50°C mark in at least four Middle Eastern countries, including Iran, Kuwait, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).” This weather may be desirable for many, but in the middle east where they survive off of little rainfall, it is not the most desirable. According to Bloomering.com,” Of the 17 nations, 12 are in the Middle East and North Africa, according to an analysis released on Tuesday by Washington D.C.-based World Resources Institute’s Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas.” Combined with hot weather, and water scarcity, the middle east is not doing too well with giving its citizens the water they need. Many consequences are being transpired due to this lack of water in South West Asia.

Water in the middle east is scarce, but also unequally distributed causing conflict. As said by Yale Environment 360,” But it also caused the reservoir behind the dam to overflow east, flooding some 500 square kilometers of farmland and thousands of homes as far as Abu Ghraib, about 40 kilometers away on the outskirts of Baghdad..”People dying causes less money to be pumped into the economy slowing down the growing economies of many countries in the middle east. As said by Yale Environment 360, ” Behind the headline stories of brutal slaughter as Sunni militants carve out a religious state covering Iraq and Syria, there lies a battle for the water supplies that sustain these desert nations.”The citizens of many countries in the middle east are being put against each other for something everyone should have access to. So, when war comes from other countries, they are not prepared to work together. Humans are having to go against each other to get water because of the unequal distribution, but often that water isn't always clean.

Not only does the polluted water cause children to miss school, but also causes children to die. According to Aljazeera.com,” Because of Gaza’s water and sewage catastrophe, medical experts are now seeing sharp increases in waterborne and foodborne diseases, including gastroenteritis, severe diarrhea, salmonella, typhoid fever, an “alarming magnitude” of stunting in young children, and even something called “blue baby syndrome.” This is a problem because innocent children are not getting the proper schooling they need if they are sick. As said by Water.org,” The loss of 443 million school days each year due to water-related illness limits the potential of these young minds.” Schooling may seem unimportant but this lack of schooling will hurt the future of these adolescents. The Gaza Strip already has a bad unemployment problem, so if children are not getting an education in the future, there will be no one to employ people due to the absence of knowledge, and the absence of children because they are dying. 

Poverty is a huge problem in SW Asia because families are spending most of their money on water. According to PBS.org,” The water costs nearly a third of the monthly government stipend on which they survive. Khamis lost a leg in a construction accident years ago and is unable to work..” This family is relying on government assistance, and having to use most of their small amount of money to pay for water, which will prevent them from getting other things they need like clothing. Also, As stated by Releifweb, “Northeastern Syria is the area most affected by the water crisis: 27% of households spend as much as one-fifth of their income on water from tankers.” Families of water-scarce places in the middle east are not able to afford to stay in better areas, further continuing the cycle of poverty. Water is an element that everyone needs, but people who are poor in the middle east cannot always afford that.

In conclusion, the lack of water in southwest Asia has caused many consequences. Conflict and separation are conceived, death is continuous and poverty is being accepted even though it should not. Countries in the middle east should be sharing their wealth, and sharing water used by dams. These countries' resistance to working together will cause more damage than any disaster. Water is so simple yet so complicated for people in the middle east. Everyone needs it, but cannot always access it, producing many challenges.