POVERTY IN ARID REGIONS, A QUESTION OF ACCESS TO WATER? THE EXAMPLE OF EGYPT.

Water is an essential element for life and for the global functioning of the planet. Since the beginning of the life, man has settled near the water resources (the Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia, the Nile in Egypt, the Indus in India, ...) giving rise to great civilizations «More than one billion human beings will be actually deprived of the access to clean water » (Johannes burg 2001, Kyoto 2002) 2.8 billion persons live in areas affected by water stress, this number will increase to 3.9 billion from now till 2030 according to the international forum of water held in Istanbul in April 2009. These impressing figures don't show the real problem. We can't be contented with the global number, it is necessary to analyze the geography of these deficiencies taking in consideration the situation of the populations, the difficulties of the access to water, as well as the costs of the transport of this water. It is very different to compare the water resources per citizen and the rate of access of populations to clean water. The question of “Water and Society” is very complex, It involves the relations of water resources and populations with all the dimensions related to attitudes, ideas, believes and above all costs of transport and economic interest. Water has a social, economical and ecological value; these different aspects are interdependent and complimentary.

کلیدواژه ها:

Arid ، water resources ، access to water ، poverty ، cartography ، dynamic tools