Suhail Al Mazrouei leads UAE delegation to World Water Forum in Indonesia.

Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, led the UAE delegation to the 10th World Water Forum in Bali, Indonesia, themed ‘Water for Shared Prosperity’. The Forum, organized by the World Water Council and the Government of Indonesia, brought together 30,000 participants from 180 countries, including government officials and water experts, to collaborate on global water challenges.

The high-level delegation included Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak Al Shamsi, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, Abdulla Salem Al Dhaheri, UAE Ambassador to Indonesia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and Non-resident UAE Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of East Timor, along with top officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, and the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative.

Addressing the water community, Al Mazrouei emphasized the pressing issue of water resource sustainability, highlighting the sharp increase in global water needs due to population and industrial growth. He stressed the importance of efficient and integrated water resource management, particularly in the face of environmental degradation and the impacts of climate change.

Al Mazrouei also underlined the significance of water as a national priority issue for the UAE, given its arid geographical location and scarcity of natural water resources. He mentioned the UAE Water Security Strategy 2036, which aims to ensure sustainable and continuous access to safe and adequate quantities of potable water, especially through the use of non-conventional sources, such as seawater desalination. He noted that by 2036, over 50 percent of the UAE's desalinated water will be produced using highly efficient and low carbon emission Reverse Osmosis technology.
The United Nations report highlighted that the UAE has achieved impressive results in providing safe drinking water and sanitation services, with an average of 100 percent, and in integrated water resources management, with 80 percent, which is considered one of the best in the region.

Al Mazrouei stated, “The UAE has implemented strategies and initiatives to enhance water resources management, support strategic water reserves, and improve rainwater harvesting to enhance natural groundwater resources. Additionally, during COP28, we announced the first hydrogeological map and geo-database of the UAE, marking a significant milestone in documenting and managing water sources to sustain and conserve water."

Highlighting the UAE's global water initiatives, the Minister mentioned, “To bolster the global water security system, we launched the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative, which is committed to elevating the importance of water scarcity on the global agenda, accelerating the development of sustainable solutions, and fostering international cooperation. As part of its initial efforts, the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative has partnered with XPRIZE, investing US$150 million to launch the XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition, a five-year global competition aimed at encouraging innovators worldwide to focus on transforming the reliability, affordability, and sustainability of water desalination technologies.”

He further added, “We also established the UAE Water Aid Foundation, also known as Suqia UAE, to provide safe drinking water to underprivileged communities. Since its establishment in 2015, Suqia UAE has benefited around 14.9 million people worldwide."