The New Water Minister in Jordan "Raed Abu Saud" to visit Syria on Tuesday

Jordanian Minister of Water and Irrigation Raed Abu Saud will visit Syria on Tuesday at the head of an official delegation in response to an invitation by Syrian Irrigation Minister Nader Al Buni. The visit was scheduled to take place last Tuesday but was postponed due to the formation of a new government in Jordan. An official source at the water ministry said the visit, which will last until Thursday, is designed to complete bilateral talks on water issues, discuss means to protect their water rights in water basins and store water in Al Wihda Dam. The Wihda Dam is to supply Jordan with 80 million cubic meters of water per year — 50 million cubic meters for drinking water and 30 million cubic meters for irrigating in the Jordan Valley. Jordan and Syria held talks early last month and agreed to give priority to storing rain water in al Wihda dam during the current winter season.