His Excellency Dr Latif J. Rashid
Iraqi Minster of Water Resources
Iraq Development Program
Opening Ceremony
Tuesday 28 June 2005

Ladies and Gentleman,

It is my privilege to be here today, at this meeting, to give a speech on behalf of the Iraq Ministry of Water Resources. Back in September 2003, the Iraqi Governing Council selected me to lead one of the most important institutions in the country; the Ministry of Water Resources

I assumed my responsibility, bearing in mind the challenges of five thousand years of experience in dealing with water in the Mesopotamian lands. Over the course of Iraq’s history; the Twin Rivers brought to the inhabitants of Iraq as much benefit as they brought devastation! Iraqis were able to establish one of the first human civilizations at the lower reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris which were the land of Sumer. The Sumerian Civilization was rightly called the ‘Water Civilisation’ by historians.

In the periods of droughts and floods, Iraqis learned the laws of nature and invented major engineering solutions to control and make use of water. It is worth mentioning that the Code of Hamourabi contains too many references to water.

As you know, Iraq is the gift of the Twin Rivers; the Euphrates and Tigris. They have shaped Iraq’s past and they will continue to shape its future. As to the present, well, I have the privilege, as much as the responsibility, to face the current water challenges. I must admit that they are many.

Our country has more than 11 million hectors of cultivable land and half of which is under cultivation. More than two third of the cultivated land in Iraq requires irrigation to stay productive. Less than one third uses dry farming. Accordingly, land productivity varies with location, physical and chemical characteristics of soil as well as the political/security situation. Water is being controlled by more than 100 hydraulic structures; including 25 major dams and barrages. We generate nearly 20 per cent of the nations electrical power and irrigation water is currently being delivered using extensive network of canals the length of which exceeds 27,000km.

The major challenge for Iraqi Irrigation and water sector is the salinity of soil. Our ancestors, who invested irrigation and hydraulics engineering, were able to understand or discover the importance of drainage!!! So, thousands of years of irrigation practices resulted in high rising water table and salinization of vast irrigated lands.

Other challenges include the control structures, storage, and operations of the major reservoirs and lakes, supply of water for agricultural, domestic and industrial users. But theses are traditional responsibilities of any water authority. However the nature of the current challenges has changed as we lead our ministry towards strategic directions aiming at water and land conservation as opposed to the traditional role of the suppliers of bulk water abundant and unlimited.

The past three decades witnessed the biggest alteration in the natural systems of the Euphrates and Tigris causing dramatic alteration in the hydrology and the hydro period maximum and minimum flows. The riparian countries resorted to an elaborate programs of dams construction resulted in significant reduction of the amount of water flowing to our country. Iraq also has developed and extensive multipurpose network of control structures aiming mainly at mitigating the floods but also to generate hydro power and to meet the new increased demand on the supply of water.

The Iraq river systems are already under stress. The Euphrates River annual flow at the border with Syria decreased from 28 billion cubic metres (BCM) to around 10 BCM. The Tigris River is awaiting similar scenario. The quality of the flowing water is directly linked to its quantity. To add to the hardship facing the Iraq environment and its river system in particular, the mismanagement of Iraq’s waters under the former regime and the events of 1980-2005 have caused a great deal of deterioration both in the stability and safety of the infrastructures as well as the overall performance of the system.

I am not trying to paint a bleak picture of Iraqi water resources situation. To a certain extent Iraq is still considered to be water rich. We are demanded to pursue policies that will conserve water and improve its quality. We are also talking to our neighbouring countries to trying to create the right conditions for long term or permanent solutions to the outstanding issues of water sharing based on international law. We are looking seriously at improving new structures as well as rehabilitating existing structures after the decades of neglect under the foreign regime.

In brief the functions of the Ministry of Water Resources could be summarised as follows:

- Assess water resources and requirements
- Manage water in rivers, streams, reservoirs, wetlands and marshes as well as the groundwater
- Construction, operation and maintenance of dams, canals, regulators, barrages, pumping station and drainage systems
- Issuing water extraction licenses and water allocation entitlements
- Research and studies on land and water
- Monitor, plan and manage water use across the country; including integrated master water plan
- Negotiate water sharing agreements with other riparian countries based on international law
- Protect the environment, biological diversity and related ecosystems
- Restoration and development of marsh land areas
- Construction of strategically important Hydro-Electric Projects
- Improvements in standard of technical knowledge through capacity building and training courses

Since we took office we have introduced serious measures to restore the devastated ecosystem in Iraqi rivers and in particular in the southern delta where the famous Garden of Eden is thought to be located. These measures resulted in the restoration of the nearly 36 per cent of the vast marshlands of Iraq which has been tragically destroyed by the former regime. We have also introduced measures to enhance transparency and accountability in the Ministry tying to encourage the staff as well as the local communities in the decision making process for the benefit of the nation.

We believe that water is precious and we will continue our efforts to make Iraq’s water systems healthier, properly protected and operated. In this endeavour we look at the outside world and particularly the developed countries to support us generously to get the latest technology and provide much needed help to move Iraq forward towards stability and prosperity.