Amman, Dec. 27 (Petra) – Official data from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation showed that total spending on projects and programs during 2025 reached about half a billion dollars, covering the implementation of major strategic projects, improvements in water supply, wastewater projects, expansion in the use of renewable energy, and water harvesting projects, as well as digital transformation programs and institutional capacity building.

This level of spending underscores the government’s commitment to strengthening national water security, improving the quality of services provided to citizens, and implementing sustainable projects that help address the challenges of water scarcity and climate change.

The ministry’s achievements in 2025 marked a qualitative shift in the management of the water sector through continued progress in implementing the National Carrier Project for desalination and water conveyance from Aqaba to Amman. The project contract was signed, 11 annexes to the agreement were completed, and grants and international support were secured, most notably a Dutch grant of 31 million euros as part of a broader 100 million euro support package for the water sector.

In the area of improving water supply, the ministry and its authorities implemented rehabilitation and modernization projects for water networks in several governorates. These included the implementation of the Bani Kinana District water systems improvement project at a cost of nearly $60 million and the rehabilitation of water networks in Tafilah governorate at a cost of JD6.1 million, Petra/Maan at JD6.8 million, and Ramtha at 21.36 million euros. Additional projects included the rehabilitation of Mashtaba water networks in Jerash governorate valued at $10.34 million, the rehabilitation of seven wells in the Kafrein area at a cost of $1.196 million, and the rehabilitation of the Abu Al-Zeighan wells desalination plant at a cost of $36 million.

The ministry placed increased emphasis on the wastewater sector by implementing and signing agreements for major projects, including the Hakama–Irbid wastewater project valued at JD11.377 million, wastewater projects in northeast Balqa worth 60 million euros, projects in west Irbid and southwest Amman costing $27.7 million, the expansion of the Samra wastewater treatment plant and enhancement of water sources at a cost of $46 million, and the expansion and rehabilitation of the Ain Ghazal plant through a $3 million grant and a second grant of 708,700 euros.

The data showed that the ministry worked to reduce operational energy bill costs as part of a move toward sustainability, implementing renewable energy projects including the operation of a 2-megawatt photovoltaic solar power project for the Disi Water Project and solar energy projects at the Zara–Ma’in plant at a cost of JD1.2 million. One of these projects was awarded the silver prize for solar energy projects in the United Arab Emirates in October.

In the field of water harvesting and risk management, the ministry completed the design and implementation of 15 water harvesting facilities, received water harvesting structures and ponds with a storage capacity exceeding 2.1 million cubic meters, established 120 water harvesting units in Karak governorate, awarded a tender for ponds in Mafraq governorate with a capacity of 125,000 cubic meters, and prepared national flood intensity maps and launched dam risk assessment tools.

The year 2025 also saw an expansion in institutional and regional partnerships, with the signing of 10 investment agreements in the central and southern Jordan Valley, six agreements to transfer water distribution management tasks to water user associations, discussions on implementing projects with international partners, the reaching of a Jordanian–Syrian agreement on the equitable distribution of Yarmouk Basin waters, and Jordan’s official accession to the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) in May.

In the area of digital transformation and capacity building, the ministry launched a water and energy data management system at a cost of 2.7 million euros, rolled out the Ministry of Water and Irrigation’s electronic application, graduated the first cohort of the training program for workers in the Palestinian water sector, secured ISO 9001:2015 international quality management certification for the laboratories of the Jordan Valley Authority, and launched an update of the ministry’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) unit.

In the field of initiatives and training programs, the ministry implemented a number of programs, including a plumbing program for women, the launch of an irrigation water conservation campaign in Deir Alla, the launch of a training program for engineers and operators in the water sector in cooperation with Al-Balqa Applied University, and the organization of a series of dialogue sessions to engage local communities in addressing the challenges of the water sector and climate change.

//Petra// AF

27/12/2025 20:21:35