The Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources, and Fisheries, Ezzedine Ben Cheikh, revealed on Thursday the scheduled completion of five dams: Tassa, Raghai, El Maleh El Aloui, Siliana Wahed, and Boulaaba, as part of the implementation of the national program to improve the rate of mobilization of surface water resources, which is currently estimated at 93 percent.
During the joint plenary session between Parliament and the Council of Regions and Districts, devoted to examining the mission of the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources, and Fisheries as part of the 2024 state budget project in Bardo, Ben Cheikh said that the ministry is completing the construction of five dams, namely the Upper Mallag, Al-Saeeda, Al-Kalaa Al-Kobra, Douimis, and Khalled dams.
He stressed that surface water is one of the most vital resources ensuring life’s sustainability and economic growth. In light of increasing water challenges since the start of the 21st century, he clarified that water diversion projects and the increase of dam capacity have been completed, including the desalination of the Nabhana and Siliana dams and the transfer of water from the Berbera dam to the Kef and Siliana regions.
Regarding water supply systems, he indicated that the percentage of potable water supply in rural areas reached 95.2 percent by the end of 2023, with about 54.6 percent provided through the National Water Exploitation and Distribution Company, in addition to supplying more than 2,400 public facilities, including primary and secondary schools, hospitals, and mosques.
He added that the management of water systems in rural areas by rural engineering departments is entrusted to hydraulic complexes, with around 1,450 complexes currently responsible for providing potable water. Nevertheless, the water complex system is currently experiencing many difficulties along with the complexity of water systems.
Furthermore, he noted that SONEDE (National Water Distribution Utility) has prepared a program to address peak consumption and reduce the water deficit, represented by completing seawater desalination plants. In 2024, the Al-Zarat and Sfax plants started operations with a total capacity of 150,000 cubic meters per day, 50,000 from Zarat and 100,000 from Sfax. The desalination plant in Sousse, with a daily production capacity of 50,000 cubic meters, is also being established, in addition to increasing the production capacity of each of the plants in Djerba, Zarat, Sfax, and Sousse, along with studying the completion of desalination plants in Mahdia and Zarzis.
To strengthen water resources in the interior regions, mainly supplied by groundwater, specifically the regions of Kef, Siliana, Zaghouan, Gafsa, and Kasserine, 41 out of a total of 57 scheduled wells have been drilled, equipped, and connected, with the two seawater desalination plants in El-Zarat and Sfax having been operational since last July. This has had a positive impact on the water balance in the Cap Bon, Sahel, Sfax, and southeastern regions, helping to avoid frequent water cuts and improve the quality of water distributed in these areas.