ABSTRACT
The Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus is one of the most crucial developmental
challenges for semi-arid and arid economies such as in the Arab world. Food production is
compromised by water scarcity; water scarcity in turn is caused by population growth,
urban water supply and sanitation and agriculture (Allan, 2002). Other trade-offs exist
between water and energy production and between energy and food production. As the
Arab world’s dependence on food, and therefore on virtual water ‘imports’ continues to
grows, achieving water, energy and food security sustainably will be a challenge of
historical magnitude. International organizations, the scientific and non-governmental
organization (NGO) communities have repeatedly pointed at practices aimed at
sustainable development in dryland economies. The emphasis is placed on policy shifts
to generate positive trade-offs through resource optimization. According to those views,
‘win-win scenarios’ between economic and environmental planning can be achieved by
following advice, from both the physical and the social sciences, that emphasizes planning
tools for ‘nexus implementation’ (Hoff, Mohtar, & Lahn, 2014). While the rationale of
those approaches is to identify demand-side management solutions, this paper will argue
that these discussions are often incomplete. They neglect the pivotal point that demand-
side management options will not suffice due to population growth, uneven economic
development and past political economic spectres that continue to haunt Arab drylands.
This article will therefore address the question of how to fund sustainable strategies that
are informed by nexus thinking for both demand and supply-side management.
