Mobilising funding in the water sector: The potential for private sector participation and desalination in the levant region

The need to mobilize funding to the water sector in four countries of Levant is discussed. The water infrastructure in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria is deficient. Therefore there is a need for massive investments in water infrastructure over the next decade. The emphasis in Middle Eastern countries have been in mobilizing new water resources, while water use efficiency has received less attention. Due to the increasing water demand and serious water deficit, an improvement of water efficiency will, however, not suffice. More expensive solutions, such as an increase of desalination capacity are needed for tackling water scarcity. The limited public funding resources are an obstacle to developing the necessary water services. Therefore the role of financing mechanisms will become increasingly important. All the Levant countries have already realized that there is a need to attract more private funding to the sector, and are in different stages of development of clear procedures and an adequate legal framework to encourage private participation.