Water management in the GCC- statistics & facts

The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council region are considered some of the most water stressed locations in the world. In 2014, Kuwait had the highest water dependency rate in the world as it depends on importing 100 percent of its water from neighboring countries.

GCC water sources

Amongst the Gulf Cooperation Council states, Saudi Arabia abstracted the largest volume of fresh groundwater in recent years. The Gulf Cooperation Council region depends heavily on the desalination of water. To meet the demand of its large population, Saudi Arabia has become one of the largest producers of desalinated water worldwide. It had the largest volume of desalinated water production in the region, followed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE). At the same time, the annual volume of treated wastewater used in Saudi Arabia was substantially higher compared to the other states in the Gulf Cooperation Council region

GCC water conservation efforts

Previously, most Gulf Cooperation Council countries charged their citizens a small, subsidized rate for water utilities. This however is gradually changing, as the governments in the region as well as citizens are becoming more and more aware of the water crisis affecting their countries. The designed capacity of wastewater treatments plants has been on the rise to encourage the recycling and reuse of treated sewage water. Oman announced a plan to phase out water and electricity subsidies until 2025. On the other hand, the aging and inefficient water infrastructure in Saudi Arabia contributes to the country's comparatively high-water inefficiencies such as the loss of water during transport. Saudi administration has adopted proactive measures to reduce nationwide water consumption and encourage conservation of water. In large cities, projects are continuing to replace outdated water distribution systems as well as enhance drainage and wastewater networks. Access to water is in general a global concern, as the future the demand for fresh water will increase for municipal and domestic usage, as well as for industry and agricultural use.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Salma Saleh, Jun 5, 2024

Key insights

Volume of available water to use in the United Arab Emirates
4,900m cbm/y
Volume of available water to use in Qatar
1,100m cbm/y
Volume of available water to use in Kuwait
1,500m cbm/y
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Current statistics on this topic

Volume of water produced by desalination plants in Saudi Arabia from 2010 to 2022 (in million cubic meters)

Water & Wastewater

Saudi Arabia's desalination plant water production 2010-2022

Share of annual freshwater available for use in the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2022, by source

Water & Wastewater

Share of freshwater available for use GCC 2022, by water source

Water consumption in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates from 2016 to 2023, by source (in million imperial gallons)

Water & Wastewater

Water consumption in Dubai UAE 2016-2023, by source

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Regional overview

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Regional overview

  • Premium Statistic Volume of available water to use in the GCC 2012-2022
  • Premium Statistic Available water to use volume in the GCC 2022, by country
  • Premium Statistic Reused water volume in the GCC 2017-2022
  • Premium Statistic Production volume of desalinated water in the GCC 2022, by country

Water consumption

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Water consumption

  • Premium Statistic Saudi Arabia drinking water consumption 2022, by region
  • Premium Statistic Net consumption of potable water in Kuwait 2005-2022
  • Premium Statistic Distribution of used water UAE 2022, by final user
  • Premium Statistic Water consumption in Dubai UAE 2016-2023, by source

Wastewater

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Wastewater

  • Premium Statistic Treated wastewater volume in GCC 2018-2022
  • Premium Statistic Share of reused water out of treated wastewater GCC 2016
  • Premium Statistic Volume of treated wastewater UAE 2015-2022
  • Premium Statistic Number of wastewater treatment plants UAE 2022, by emirate

Freshwater

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Freshwater

  • Premium Statistic Share of freshwater available for use GCC 2022, by water source
  • Premium Statistic Fresh groundwater abstraction volume in the GCC 2011-2022
  • Premium Statistic Available water to use volume in the UAE 2010-2022
  • Premium Statistic Available water to use volume in the Qatar 2010-2022
  • Premium Statistic Available water to use volume in the Kuwait 2010-2022
  • Premium Statistic Volume of available water to use in Bahrain 2010-2022

Desalination

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Desalination

  • Premium Statistic Installed capacity of water desalination plants DEWA UAE 2014-2023
  • Premium Statistic Saudi Arabia's desalination plant water production 2010-2022
  • Premium Statistic Production volume of desalinated water in Qatar 2012-2022
  • Premium Statistic Production volume of desalinated water in Kuwait 2012-2022
  • Premium Statistic Production volume of desalinated water in Bahrain 2007-2022

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