Fahad Al-Attiya: A country with no water

Translator: Timothy Covell Reviewer: Morton Bast

Translator: Abdinasser Ahmed Reviewer: Abdikani Hassan

Salaam alaikum.

Asalaama calaykum

Welcome to Doha.

Kusoo dhawaada Dooxa

I am in charge of making this country's food secure.

Waxaan ka masuul ahay sidii dalkan isugu filaan lahaa cunto ahaan.

That is my job for the next two years,

Taas waa shaqadayda labada sano ee soo socda,

to design an entire master plan,

inaan sameeyo qorshe dhamaystiran,

and then for the next 10 years to implement it --

oon dhamaystirno dabcan tobanka sano soo socda --

of course, with so many other people.

dabcan, aniga iyo dad kaleba.

But first, I need to talk to you about a story, which is my story,

Laakiin ugu horayn, waxaan u baahanahay inaan idiin sheego qiso, waa qisadayda,

about the story of this country that you're all here in today.

waa qiso ku saabsan dalkan aad maanta dhaamntiin joogtaan.

And of course, most of you have had three meals today,

dabcan, intiina badani sadex wakhti ayaad maanta wax cunteen,

and probably will continue to have after this event.

run ahaantiina waad wadi doontaan munaasibadan ka dib.

So going in, what was Qatar in the 1940s?

Hadanba aan wadee, Qadar siday ahayd 1940kii?

We were about 11,000 people living here.

Waxaa ku noolaa 11,000 oo qof halkn.

There was no water. There was no energy, no oil, no cars, none of that.

May jirin biyo. May jirin tamar, saliid, gawaadhi, waxaas ma jirin.

Most of the people who lived here

Dadka badi ku noolaa halkan

either lived in coastal villages, fishing,

waxay ku noolaayeen xeebaha si ay u kaluumaystaan

or were nomads who roamed around with the environment trying to find water.

ama waxay ahaayeen reer guuraa hadba saxara u guurguura si ay biyo u helaan.

None of the glamour that you see today existed.

Waxba kama jirin quruxda aad maanta aragtaan.

No cities like you see today in Doha or Dubai or Abu Dhabi or Kuwait or Riyadh.

Magaalooyinka aad maanta aragtaan ma jirin sida Dooxa, Dubay ama Abu Dubay ama Kuwayd ama Riyaad.

It wasn't that they couldn't develop cities.

Maaha in la samayn kari waayey magaalooyin.

Resources weren't there to develop them.

Muu jirin khayraadkii lagu samayn lahaa.

And you can see that life expectancy was also short.

Sidaad arkaysaan cimriga dadku wuu gaabnaa

Most people died around the age of 50.

Dadka intooda badan waxay ku dhiman jireen 50.

So let's move to chapter two: the oil era.

Hadaba aan u wareegno mawduuca labaad: wakhtigii saliid.

1939, that's when they discovered oil.

1939 kii, waa xiligii ay heleen saliida.

But unfortunately, it wasn't really fully exploited commercially

Laakii nasiib daro, runtii qaab ganacsi looma soo saarin

until after the Second World War.

ilaa intii laga gaadhayey dagaalkii labaad ee adduunka.

What did it do?

Maxay qabatay saliidu?

It changed the face of this country, as you can see today and witness.

Waxay bedeshay muuqaalka wadankan, sidaad maanta aragtaan ama makhraatiga ka tihiinba.

It also made all those people who roamed around the desert --

Waxay ka dhigtay dadkii u guurguuri jiray saxara --

looking for water, looking for food,

ee raadinayey biyaha, raadinayey cuntada,

trying to take care of their livestock -- urbanize.

iskuna dayayay inay xanaaneeyaan xoolohooda -- inay degaan magaalooyin.

You might find this strange,

Waa laga yaabaa inaad la yaabtaan tan,

but in my family we have different accents.

laakiin qoyskaygu waa kala lahjad

My mother has an accent that is so different to my father,

Hooyaday waxay ku hadashaa lahjad ka duwan tan aabahay,

and we're all a population of about 300,000 people in the same country.

waxaanu nahay dad gaadhaya ilaa 300,000 dalkan.

There are about five or six accents in this country as I speak.

Waxaa jira shan ilaa lix lahjadood dalkan iminkadan aan hadlayo.

Someone says, "How so? How could this happen?"

Qaar baa dhaha "sidee hada? Siday ku dhici kartaa tani?"

Because we lived scattered.

Sababtu waxay ahayd inaan kala filiqsanayn.

We couldn't live in a concentrated way simply because there was no resources.

Kumaan noolaan karayn inaan isu nimaadno.

And when the resources came, be it oil,

Markii khayraadka la helay, ha noqoto saliidee,

we started building these fancy technologies

waxaan bilownay dhisida teknoolajiyadaa layaabka leh

and bringing people together because we needed the concentration.

waanuna isu keenay dadkii sababtoo ah waxaan u baahanay inaan isu nimaadno.

People started to get to know each other.

Dadkii markaa way is barteen.

And we realized that there are some differences in accents.

waxayna ogaadeen inay jirto faraq u dhaxeeya lahjadaha.

So that is the chapter two: the oil era.

Taasi waa mawduucii labaad: xiligii saliida.

Let's look at today.

Aan eegno maanta.

This is probably the skyline that most of you know about Doha.

Dhismayaashan dhaadheer waa waxaad dhabtii ku taqaanaan Dooxa.

So what's the population today?

Hadaba tirada dadku maanta waa intee?

It's 1.7 million people.

Waa hal milyan oo qof.

That is in less than 60 years.

Intaasi waa in ka yar lixdan sano.

The average growth of our economy is about 15 percent for the past five years.

Koboca dhaqaaluhu waa ilaa 15 boqolkiiba shantii sano ee la soo dhaafay.

Lifespan has increased to 78.

Cimriga dadku waxay gaadhay 78 sano

Water consumption has increased to 430 liters.

Isticmaalka biyuhu waxay kordheen 430 litir.

And this is amongst the highest worldwide.

Tani waxay ka mid tahay kuwa ugu badan adduunka.

From having no water whatsoever

Iyadoo sideedaba la haysan wax biyo ah

to consuming water to the highest degree, higher than any other nation.

lana gaadhay isticmaalka ugu badan biya, mid ka badan dal kasta

I don't know if this was a reaction to lack of water.

Ma garanayo inay tahani falcelis u ahayd biyo la'aantii.

But what is interesting about the story that I've just said?

Balse maxay xiiso leedahay waxaan idhi?

The interesting part is that we continue to grow

Qaybta xiisaha lihi waa inaan korayno

15 percent every year for the past five years without water.

15 boqolkiiba sanad kasta shantii sano ee la soo dhaafay biyo la'aan.

Now that is historic. It's never happened before in history.

Iminka waa taariikhi. weligeed hore ugama dhicin taariikhda.

Cities were totally wiped out because of the lack of water.

Magaalooyinka waxaa gebi ahaanba baabiyey waa biyo la'aanta.

This is history being made in this region.

Tan waa taariikh gobolkani sameeyey.

Not only cities that we're building,

Maaha qudha magaaloyinkaan dhisayno,

but cities with dreams and people who are wishing to be scientists, doctors.

laakiin magaalooyinka lagu hamiyo dadkuna rabaan inay noqdaan saynisyahano, dhakhtaro.

Build a nice home, bring the architect, design my house.

Dhisaan guryo qurux badan, keenaan farshaxanyahano, sameeyaan gurigayga.

These people are adamant that this is a livable space when it wasn't.

Dadkani waxay ku fekereen meel lagu noolaan karo iyadoon ahayn markaas.

But of course, with the use of technology.

Dabcan, iyadoo la isticmaalayo teknolojiyada.

So Brazil has 1,782 millimeters per year of precipitation of rain.

Hadaba Baraasiil waxay heshaa 1,782 milimitir oo biyaha roobka sanadkii.

Qatar has 74, and we have that growth rate.

Qadarna 74, hadana sidaas ayaan u koraynaa [15 boqolkiiba]

The question is how.

Suaashu waa sidee.

How could we survive that?

Sideen ugu badbaadnay taas?

We have no water whatsoever.

Si kastay ahaatoba biyo ma haysano

Simply because of this gigantic, mammoth machine called desalination.

Iyadoo fudud sababtu waa mishiinka baaxada wayn aan ugu yeedhno biyo sifeeyaha

Energy is the key factor here. It changed everything.

Tamartu waa furaha isbelka. wax kasta way bedeshay.

It is that thing that we pump out of the ground, we burn tons of,

Waa shayga aan ka soo saarno dhulka, u guno xajmi badan,

probably most of you used it coming to Doha.

runtii intiina badan waad isticmaasheed iyada imaatinkiini Dooxa.

So that is our lake, if you can see it.

Markaa taasi waa haradayada, hadaad arki karaysaan.

That is our river.

Taasi waa webigayaga.

That is how you all happen to use and enjoy water.

Taasi waa sidaad dhamaantin u isticmaashaan uguna raaxaysataan biyaha.

This is the best technology that this region could ever have: desalination.

Tani waa teknoolojiyada ugu wanaagsan ee dalkan yeelan karo abid: biyo-sifaynta.

So what are the risks?

Hadaba khatartu maxay tahay?

Do you worry much?

Aad miyaad u werwertaan?

I would say, perhaps if you look at the global facts,

Waxaan odhan karaa, hadaad eegtaan xaqiiqda dunida,

you will realize, of course I have to worry.

waxaad rumaysan doontaan, dabcan inaan werwero.

There is growing demand, growing population.

Waxaa jira dalab kordhaya, bulsho koraysa.

We've turned seven billion only a few months ago.

Dhawr bilood ka hor 7 billlion ayaynu noqonay.

And so that number also demands food.

Sidoo kalena tiradaasi cunto ayay u baahantay.

And there's predictions that we'll be nine billion by 2050.

Saadashuna waxay sheegi in 2050ka dadku noqonayo 9 billion.

So a country that has no water

Markaa wadan aan biyo lahayn

has to worry about what happens beyond its borders.

waa inuu ka werweraa waxa ka dhaca wax ka baxsan xuduudiisa.

There's also changing diets.

Waxaa sido kale is bedelaysa cuntooyinka.

By elevating to a higher socio-economic level,

Korodhka dhaqan-dhaqaale ee sare

they also change their diet.

wuxuu sidoo kale bedelay dadka cunadooda.

They start eating more meat and so on and so forth.

Waxay bilaabeen inay cunaan hilib badan iyo wax la mida.

On the other hand, there is declining yields

Dhanka kale, waxaa yaraaday wax soo saarkii

because of climate change and because of other factors.

sababtu waa cimilida is bedelaysa iyo waxyaabo kale.

And so someone has to really realize when the crisis is going to happen.

Markaa qofbaa runtii xaqiiqsaday marka dhibku dhacayo.

This is the situation in Qatar, for those who don't know.

Tani waa xaalada Qadar, waa inta aan garanayn'e.

We only have two days of water reserve.

Waxaan haysanaa kaydh biyood oo laba cisho oo qudha ah.

We import 90 percent of our food,

Waxaan soo dhoofsanaa 90 boqolkiiba cuntadayada,

and we only cultivate less than one percent of our land.

waxaanna beeranaynaa in ka yar 1 boqolkiiba dhulkayaga.

The limited number of farmers that we have

Tirada yar ee beeralayda aan leenahay

have been pushed out of their farming practices

waa laga saaray beerahay falan jireen

as a result of open market policy and bringing the big competitions, etc., etc.

sababtuna waa siyaasada dhaqaalaha furan iyo imaatinka la tartamayaal waawayn iyo wax la mida.

So we also face risks.

Markaa sidoo kale waxaan wajahaynay khatar.

These risks directly affect the sustainability of this nation and its continuity.

Khatarahayni waxay si toosa u saamaynaysaa waaritaanka dalkan iyo sii socoshadiisa.

The question is, is there a solution?

Suaashu waxay tahay, ma jiraa xal?

Is there a sustainable solution?

Ma jiraa xal waara?

Indeed there is.

Haa dhabtii wuu jiraa.

This slide sums up thousands of pages of technical documents

Islaydhkan wuxuu koobsaday kumanaan farqadood oo qoraalo farsamo ah

that we've been working on over the past two years.

oo aanu ka shaqaynaynay labadii sano ee la soo dhaafay.

Let's start with the water.

Aan ku bilowno biyaha.

So we know very well -- I showed you earlier -- that we need this energy.

Si wanaagsan ayaan u garanaynaa -- horaan idiin tusay -- inaan u baahanahay tamartan.

So if we're going to need energy, what sort of energy?

Hadaba hadaan u baahanahay tamar, tamar noocee ah?

A depletable energy? Fossil fuel?

Tamar dhamaankarta? tamarka dhulka ku hoos jirta?

Or should we use something else?

Mise wax kale ayaan isticmaalnaa?

Do we have the comparative advantage to use another sort of energy?

Miyaynu haysnaa nooc kale oo tamara oo faaido leh oon ku bedelano?

I guess most of you by now realize that we do: 300 days of sun.

Waxaan qiyaasi in intiina badani aad iminka xaqiiqsateen inaan haysano: 300 cisho oo cadceeda.

And so we will use that renewable energy to produce the water that we need.

Markaa waxaan isticmaali karnaa tamarta dib loo cusboonaysiiyo si aan ugu soo saarno biyaha aan u baahanahay.

And we will probably put 1,800 megawatts of solar systems

Waxaanan dhabtii samaynaynaa sistam soo saara 1,800 megawat oo tamarta cadceeda ah

to produce 3.5 million cubic meters of water.

si aan u soo saarno 3.5 milyan kuyuubik mitir oo biyo ah.

And that is a lot of water.

Taasina waa biyo badan

That water will go then to the farmers,

Biyahaasi waxay gaadhi doonaan beeralayda,

and the farmers will be able to water their plants,

beeralayduna waxay awoodi inay ku waraabsadaan dalagooda,

and they will be able then to supply society with food.

waxay awoodi doonan inay bulshada u soo saaraan cunto.

But in order to sustain the horizontal line --

Hadaba si loo joogteeyo udubkan taagan --

because these are the projects, these are the systems that we will deliver --

maxaa yeelay kuwan waa mashaariic, kuwan waa hababkii aan u gudbin lahayn

we need to also develop the vertical line:

waxaan markaa u baahanahay inaan samayno udub jiifa:

system sustenance, high-level education, research and development,

sistam waara, waxbarasho tayadeed sarayso, cilmi baadhis iyo horumar,

industries, technologies, to produce these technologies for application, and finally markets.

warshado, teknolojiyad soo saara teknolojiyadii dabikhi lahayd iyo ugu danbayntii suuqyo ganacsi.

But what gels all of it, what enables it, is legislation, policies, regulations.

Hadaba maxaa isku xidha, waxa isku xidha waa sharciyada, siyaasadaha, xeerarka sharciyadeed

Without it we can't do anything.

La'aantoodna waxba ma qaban karno.

So that's what we are planning to do.

Taasi markaa waa waxaan qorshaynayno inaan qabano.

Within two years we should hopefully be done with this plan

Labo sano gudahood waxaan ku rajo waynahay inaan qabano qorshahan.

and taking it to implementation.

and u qaadno inaan qabyo tirno.

Our objective is to be a millennium city, just like many millennium cities around:

Hadafkayagu waa inaan noqono magaalada kunka sano, sida magaalooyinka kale ee kunka sano jira;

Istanbul, Rome, London, Paris, Damascus, Cairo.

Istanbuul, Rooma, Landhan, Baariis, Dimishiq, Qaahira.

We are only 60 years old, but we want to live forever

Lixdan jir qudhaa ayaan nahay, laakiin waxaan doonaynaa inaan noolaano abid

as a city, to live in peace.

ahaano magaalo, ku noolaano nabad.

Thank you very much.

Aad ayaad u mahadsantihiin.

(Applause)

(sacab)