A detailed report regarding the progress of the Gaza Desalination Facility project was presented to the Palestinian president, Mahmound Abbas, at a meeting on 17 June 2013 by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM).
UfM deputy secretary general for environment and water, Dr Rafiq Husseini presented the report at the Presidential Office in Ramallah.
Ways for gathering support for implementing the project were discussed in light of the existing arab and international commitments to provide financial support for its implementation. The prime minister and his deputies will consult all relevant parties for proceeding with the project’s implementation.
The deputy prime minister, Abu-Amr, said that the government aspires to the quick implementation of this project, given the tightening water crisis in the Gaza Strip, as 90% of the water is not suitable for drinking or agriculture. He also stressed that “what makes the Gaza Desalination Facility project even more urgent is the fact that the water crisis in the Strip would escalate at an alarming rate over the coming three years.”
Similar issues of electricity and wastewater treatment were also discussed.