50 DEVELOPMENT
Enhancing global cooperation to address the water-food-energy nexus
Suleiman J Al-Herbish, Director-General, OFID( OPEC Fund for International Development)
In all our work, we seek to ensure a balance between economic growth, social progress and protection of the environment
Food security, access to clean water and access to modern energy services are three recurring themes in the debate leading to the global community agreeing on the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals( SDGs). All three elements are essential for human development. And they are closely intertwined. Water is needed for almost all forms of energy production; energy is needed to treat and transport water; and both water and energy are needed to grow and produce food.
Traditionally, development planners have often sought solutions to the water, energy or food crises by addressing each problem separately. But tackling just one of the three elements can aggravate one or both of the others. A case in point is the irresponsible expansion of the production of first-generation biofuels in the second half of the last decade, which caused a huge rise in food prices, especially in the developing countries. This example was highlighted in a special study,“ Biofuels and Food Security,” commissioned by OFID and published in 2010.
It is a fact that the challenges posed to sustainable development by the strong inter-linkage between water, food and energy are confronted by all parts of the globe. However, some regions are more exposed than others. For example, in sub-
Water-food-energy Nexus in action © Ocean / Corbis
Saharan Africa, barely one-third of the population has access to electricity, and less than half has access to freshwater. The situation is likely to worsen as the availability of arable land( for agriculture production) declines; as competition for land and water intensifies; and as access to energy becomes a pressing constraint on economic growth.
As a development institution of almost 40-years’ standing, OFID has extensive experience in addressing these connected challenges. In addition, our activities have covered other important sectors, including education, health, rural development, transportation, microfinance, industry and telecommunications.
In all our work, we seek to ensure a balance between economic growth, social progress and protection of the environment.