Over the past 30 years the Kingdom of Jordan has emerged as a world leader in the use of treated wastewater. In response to acute water scarcity, the country’s water authorities have embraced the use of non-conventional water resources, including treated wastewater, as a core strategy for conserving precious freshwater supplies for a rapidly growing population. This publication systematically presents what has been achieved and learned through the German-Jordanian development cooperation, focusing on five major areas: 1. Expanding wastewater infrastructure, including sewer connections and the capacity of wastewater treatment plants 2. Improving wastewater treatment 3. Facilitating the reuse of treated wastewater 4. Promoting energy efficient and climate-friendly wastewater systems 5. Strengthening governance and oversight in the water sector Delinieating each of these areas, this publication presents the strategies pursued by the Government of Jordan and the contributions which German financial and technical cooperation have made to their realisation. One of the first countries to embrace the opportunities presented by reclaimed water, Jordan has succeeded in turning wastewater into a major asset in its quest for water security. Visionary thinking, careful planning, and strong partnerships have come together to shape a wastewater sector that has proven remarkably resilient in the face of shocks and challenges, from influxes of over one million Syrian refugees over the past decade to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bibliographic information

(2023). Resilience and Innovation in Jordan´s Wastewater Sector - Contributions of Jordanian-German Development Cooperation GIZ Wastewater Treatment, Reuse and Water Supply (WTR) in Jordan

Filter / Tags

Decentralised wastewater treatment (e.g. DEWATS)Greywater or wastewaterPoliticians and local decision makersPractitionersResearch publicationsEnglishClimate Resilient Sanitation

External links

 GIZ Projects / Programmes

 GIZ Jordan: Al-Karablieh, L.B., Maha, H. and Ahmad, S. (2019) - Decentralized Wastewater Management in Jordan (Compendium)

 GIZ Jordan: Polak, M., Ziegler, D., Bockelman, D., Schmidt, M., and Zimmermann, E. (2019) 40 Years of German-Jordanian Technical Cooperation in the Water Sector (Report)

 GIZ (2020) - Support for Efficient and Effective Energy Management within Jordanian Water Sector (Energy Assessment Report)

 Jordanian Authorities

 MWI (2021) - Water and Sanitation for Syrian Refugees and Host Communities - VII/VIII Consulting Services for the Implementation of Feasibility Study. Amman: Ministry of Water and Irrigation.

 MWI (2022) - Jordan Water Sector Facts and Figures (Publication)

 MWI (2023) - National Water Strategy, 2023-2040. Jordan. (Voluntary National Review 2022)

 MWI (2023) - National Water Strategy, 2023-2040 (Summary)

 Water Authority of Jordan (WAJ) (2023) - Database Report 2022.

 Additional resources

 Board of Iftaa’, Research and Islamic Studies (2015) - Ruling on Irrigating with Treated Waste Water (Publication)

 Drechsel, P., Danso, G. K., and Hanjra, M. A. (2018) - Viability gap funding (As Samra, Jordan) - (Case Study)

 FAO and UN-Water (2021) Progress on Level of Water Stress. Global status and acceleration needs for SDG Indicator 6.4.2 (Publication)

 Global Commission on the Economics of Water (2023) - Turning the Tide: A Call for Collective Action (Publication) -

 Namrouqa, H. in Jordan Times (2015) - Renovation of Ain Ghazal treatment plant completed (Press article)

 UN (2016) - World Could Face Water Availability Shortfall by 2030 (Press Release)

 UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2023) Population Division (Data Portal)

 UN Habitat and WHO (2021) - Progress on wastewater treatment – Global status and acceleration needs for SDG indicator 6.3.1. (Publication)

 UNHCR Jordan (2022) - Zaatari Camp

 WMI (2021) - National Wastewater Infrastructure Master Plan (Report).

 WWAP (2017) - The United Nations World Water Development Report - Wastewater: The Untapped Resource

 Yoon, J. et al. (2021) - A coupled human–natural system analysis of freshwater security under climate and population change (Publication)

Downloads