Development of Water Resources: Part of Ensuring National Security
Conservation and development of water resources is one of the important aspects of the ongoing development strategy of Eritrea. This important national task has been made one of the priority areas of development and is steadily expanding. In this century, climate change and global warming combined with the concern of excess water consumption, securing water resources is becoming a subject of national security. The nowadays common expression that, if third world war is going to happen it will be because of questions related to water resources, reflects the gravity and seriousness of the matter.
The Government of Eritrea, fully understanding the effect our water holding capacity is going to have on our development programs as well as its impact on everyday life of Eritreans has been heavily investing and constructing infrastructures related to water conservation systems such as building dams, reservoirs, water diversion systems and micro-dams. To date, so much has been accomplished in this line with concerted efforts of the people and the Defense Forces in improving our water conservation capacity. It should also be noted that the Government of Eritrea has invested in importing modern machinery that play important roles in the ongoing endeavors for soil and water conservation.
As a result of the concerted efforts on part of the people, the government and the Defense Forces, a tremendous leap in our water holding capacity has been registered to date. Nonetheless, what has been achieved to date is not enough. It should be duly noted that efforts to further develop existing infrastructures and the construction of new infrastructures based on scientific methods should be increased. Also, as water is an important resource, it should be carefully managed and utilized for the betterment of the lives of fellow citizens. The Government of Eritrea has been importing technologies such as, sprinklers, pipe systems, reservoirs and distributing systems that can ensure an economical and effective means of using our water resources. However, when we talk about effective use of water, the most decisive factor is human awareness. Hence, there’s a need for increasing the awareness as well as nurturing a culture of proper utilization of water starting from individuals to the community and national levels.