The water ministries from Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority have started working on plans for a water sharing scheme, which will boost the supply of desalinated water to all three countries.

The three countries signed an agreement earlier on 9 December, at the World Bank’s headquarters in Washington, DC, for the water sharing scheme, that is expected to involve building a 180 kilometre pipeline that will channel water to be desalinated at a new desalination plant planned to be built at Aqaba, on Jordan’s coast. The water would be used by local Jordanian residents and Israel residents in proximity to the plant.

Under the water sharing agreement, Israel will increase the sale of water to the Palestinian Authority by 20-30 million cubic metres a year. Israel currently sells about 52 million cubic metres to the Palestinian Authority annually.