Agriculure Minister Khaled Hanifat said on Monday that his ministry is pressing ahead to achieve a comprehensive national water harvest project, where collective efforts are needed to counter the strategic challenge of water and climate change, which resulted in fluctuations in rainfall across the Kingdom.
Climatic change hit hard the crop seasons in Jordan due to scarce rainfall and dams drying up, adding that the ministry dealt with the problem through expansion of water harvesting and water-saving projects to mitigate the effects of climate change, and by granting alternative energy loans for projects and agricultural industries, he said during a tour of a dam and a productive families project.
He said a total of 163 dams and pits to collect rainwater have been constructed since the establishment of the state, while 63 dams and ponds were built this year.
Hanifat said that as part of the strategy to advance the agricultural sector, a future water harvesting plan was set, including the rehabilitation of most dams with a storage capacity of 67 million cubic meters, adding that the ministry will carry out this plan next year in cooperation with the Jordan Valley Authority.
He added that the ministry is looking forward to continuing cooperation with the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development through agreements on water harvesting programs and water-saving technologies.
Source: Jordan News Agency