Environment & Energy | Wednesday 23 January, 2019 4:35 am |

Badran A. Al-Omar, rector of King Saud University (KSU), on Tuesday inaugurated the eighth International Conference on Water Resources and Arid Environments at the KSU’s headquarters in Riyadh.
The conference was organized by the Prince Sultan Institute for Environmental, Water and Desert Research, the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Water Award, and the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture.
The two-day event is sponsored by Education Minister Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Asheikh.
The chairman of the conference’s supervisory authority, Dr. Abdulmalik Al-Asheikh, delivered a speech in which he expressed pride in the international status reached by the water award, especially under the patronage of King Salman.
The chairman said attendees included many researchers, and 316 scientific papers were submitted from 34 countries, 105 of which were accepted.
The conference aims to try and solve problems related to the environment and water in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. 
The deputy minister of environment, water and agriculture, Mansour bin Hilal Al-Mushaiti, said the Kingdom is witnessing the launch of many pioneering development initiatives and projects in accordance with the Vision 2030 reform plan.
The Kingdom has achieved several successes in the field of water research, namely in developing a unified reference framework to achieve water sustainability and conservation, he added.
Al-Omar said: “It is normal to see the rapid development plans implemented by the Saudi government resulting in an increase in demand for water. These plans have been accompanied by great efforts to increase water resources and rationalize their consumption, particularly in the agricultural sector.”
He added: “I would like to commend the outstanding efforts made by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, with the adoption of several strategic plans.”
KSU has played an important role in the conservation of natural resources in the Kingdom through its strategic plans and initiatives, especially those related to the management and development of water resources, he said.
The Prince Sultan Institute for Environmental, Water and Desert Research is conducting research, scientific studies and projects through the localization and development of modern technologies.
UN studies estimate that 5.3 billion people will face water scarcity by 2025, signaling a global crisis that could be exacerbated by irregular distribution of rainfall, a growing population at a rate of 90 million people per year, and increased water consumption.