ABSTRACT
Water resources management in the world today is perhaps most challenging in the Middle East region, where a combination of low rainfall and generally scarce water resources, coupled with rapid population growth, demand for water for irrigation schemes, and a complex and difficult political environment makes the allocation and protection of water resources particularly difficult. The population growth in the region generally exceeds the world average of 2.5% per annum and, on average, more than half the population lives in urban centres (Marcoux, 1996).
