In a new Occasional Paper published by the Wilson Center’s Middle East Program and ECSP, journalist Taylor Luck examines the climate priorities of wealthy and middle-income countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Luck analyzes the policies adopted by MENA states, highlighting gaps and offering recommendations to strengthen climate action in a region strained by both instability and climate change.

Central and South Asia’s water resources are critical for the region’s water, energy, food and environmental security. Major rivers in the region originate from the Hindu-Kush-Himalaya, Pamir, and Tien Shan Mountain Ranges and flow across multiple countries. Unique geographical characteristics make water management a complex and challenging task that is further complicated by a changing climate and increasing demand affecting diminishing water resources. 

Libya provides a case study for the long-term impacts of water weaponization. After the 2011 overthrow of Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, the country faced civil conflict related to his succession, including two bloody civil wars in 2011, and then from 2014 to 2020, until a ceasefire took effect in 2020. During this period of long-term instability and isolation, Libya’s water infrastructure deteriorated. Combined with the country’s limited water resources, increased demand, and poor management, water insecurity soared.

Yemen’s civil war, which began in 2014, has resulted in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. The United Nations estimates that 60% of the 377,000 deaths between 2015 and 2022 were attributed to food insecurity and limited access to health services, and two-thirds of the population (21.6 million people) are in desperate need of humanitarian aid. Though a nominal ceasefire has held since 2022, tensions persist, and civilians continue to face the brunt of the conflict.

Russia’s devastating invasion of Ukraine just over two years ago upset the larger foreign policy conversations surrounding global stability—and Russia’s role in it. Yet the conflict has brought the concept of water weaponization into the spotlight as well, especially after Russia’s destruction of the Nova Kakhovka Dam and other civilian infrastructure wreaked havoc in the region.

The world’s water is in trouble. Freshwater pollution, coupled with climate change, population growth, and increasing demand, threatens water quality and availability. Over the last 40 years, global water usage has increased every year by around 1% to support agriculture, industrial growth, and growing populations. The strain is clear already, as 26% of the world’s population lacks access to safe drinking water, and a whopping 46% lack access to basic sanitation.

A window into what we are reading at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program

China is Leading the World on Renewable Energy (Yale 360)

In November, Chinese and U.S. climate envoys pledged to triple global renewable energy by 2030, signaling renewed cooperation between the top two greenhouse gas emitters. However, the two countries are not quite on equal footing when it comes to renewable energy.