On behalf of Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Premier and Commander of the National Guard, Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, the Second Deputy Premier, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General, today patronized today the inauguration ceremony of the 6th Gulf Water Conference and the 2nd Symposium on Water Conservation entitled “Water for Sustainable Development in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries.”
At the venue, Prince Sultan was received by Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz, Governor of Riyadh Region; Prince Miqren bin Abdul Aziz, Governor of Madinah Region, Dr Ghazi bin Abdulrahman Al-Qusaibi, the Minister of Water, Abdulrahman bin Hamad Al-Atiyyah , GCC Secretary General, and a number of officials.
The Crown Prince’s speech was delivered by Prince Sultan.
Prince Sultan expressed his pleasure to address the Conference and the Symposium on Water Conservation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, noting that the Kingdom was among the first countries in the world to utilize land resources for the welfare of its citizens.
He pointed out that the government has dug wells and set up dams and water desalination stations. The Kingdom has achieved great accomplishments in the field of water provision, thanks to the great support and attention accorded by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz and the Crown Prince.
For his part, the Minister of Water, Dr Ghazi bin Abdulrahman Al-Qusaibi, in his speech to the Conference, thanked King Fahd for his great keenness and commitment to provide fresh water for citizens and guests to the Kingdom. He also thanked the Crown Prince for patronizing the Conference meeting and giving priority to the issue of water conservation.
He reviewed a scientific report saying that 6 billion people on the earth consume 50% of its fresh water supply. He noted that if water consumption remains at the current rate, it is predicted that within a quarter of a century or less, the population will consume 90% of fresh water supply. This means that two-thirds of the global population will suffer extreme water poverty. Dr Al-Qusaibi called for the implementation of strict measures to conserve water.
Prince Sultan then inaugurated the exhibition of water equipment and technology, which was organised on the fringes of the Conference.
Source: SPA
