Water For Peace In Darfur

Photo retrieved from: www.oikoumene.org

“Dwindling natural resources, caused in part by climate change, had pitted nomads against farmers and others who previously lived in harmony until desertification forced them to compete violently for water.

While his words generated some controversy at the time, the United Nations is now backing serious efforts to right the ecological situation in Darfur as a key driver for peace.

On 27-28 June, the UN, AU and Sudan’s Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources open a major international conference on Water for Sustainable Peace in Darfur. Some 200 experts on water and development will gather in Khartoum to address the challenge of creating a sustainable water sector for Darfur. That reversing environmental degradation must happen in order to establish recovery and sustainable peace in Darfur is now accepted wisdom.

While there is water underground below the sands of Darfur, the stark reality is that some areas are facing chronic depletion of water resources. Camps for hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons are running dry. The water supply for rapidly growing towns is plummeting. The population of Nyala in South Darfur, for example, has grown by 300 percent in 30 years while the water table has fallen by eight to 10 metres. Another year of low rainfall could mean that aquifers under these camps and urban centres could fail catastrophically. The gravity and urgency posed by this situation cannot be ignored and impact the chances for peace.”

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