Water and Food Security in the Arab Countries : National and Regional Implication

This article addresses water and food security issues in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Countries and their domestic and regional implications. The first section analyses the impact of global climatic change on water and food security in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Countries (hereinafter SEMCs) and shows how climate unpredictability, linked to fluctuations in rainfall levels, can affect lands used for cereal cultivation. The second section outlines how water consumption in SEMCs is strictly linked to the production, consumption and trading system of agro-food products. The third section examines the political repercussions on food security in SEMCs during the bread riots of the 1980s and during the global food crises of 2008 and 2011, both of which contributed in some measure to the outburst of the Arab Spring. The fourth section explores the geopolitical dimension of water and food security, suggesting alternative competition scenarios on a regional level.