Never in a million years could we have thought that we will live during a world-wide pandemic. Even after it started breaking out in several countries, we thought we were out of the danger zone and it wouldn’t reach Egypt. Despite the increase of confirmed cases, it’s sad to say that there are still people who aren't taking this crisis seriously.

This brings us to the main topic in this article, which is the current water shortage in Egypt and the potential water scarcity we are expected to face in the near future.  Unless we start working on enhancing our water consumption habits we will find ourselves in a very challenging situation. We are oblivious to the severity of the water crisis simply because no one acknowledges its importance. In spite of the ongoing efforts to raise awareness concerning this matter, the majority are still taking this serious threat very lightly. Since we all depend on water and soap to stay safe, we need to use it efficiently, effectively and fairly.

Check out our recommendations below to help you monitor daily water consumption.  

• Washing our hands for 20 seconds
  • As advised by the WHO, washing our hands for 20 seconds is essential to getting rid of the virus. However, it does not mean we need to keep the water running for the entire 20 seconds. Make sure to turn off the tap when you are not using its water. Remember, one minute of running water from the tap is equivalent to around 6L/Min.
• Rinsing our groceries and supermarket items
  • Since a lot of people are doing this nowadays then please make sure to not overuse water and substitute it with alcohol for the items that can’t be washed.
• Checking your facilities for leakage
  • We usually do not spend that much time at home, and accordingly, we overlook minimal water leakages. Utilize your free time by checking in on all water facilities for any leakage to fix it. A leaking tap with the leakage rate of 1 Drop/Sec can waste up to 11,000 liters per year.

People still think the water crisis is distant. We’re here to help remind to put things into place. Almost one month ago, a severe 3-day storm took place in Egypt and water & electricity were cut off in most of the country. We suffered and struggled in order to maintain our daily activities with a limited amounts of water although we were sure that it will come back shortly. Just entertain the thought of this being a permanent situation.  There’s always an initiative that you can take. Be positive, start with yourself and always believe that small actions do matter.  “Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small thing brought together” – Vincent van Gogh.

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