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CIAO DATE: 3/5/2007
Camels don't fly, deserts don't bloom: an assessment of Saudi Arabia's experiment in desert agriculture'
Elie Elhadj
May 2004
Abstract
Severe arid conditions constrained agricultural production and population size in the Arabian Peninsula over the millennia (except around oases and in parts of Yemen). An abrupt change in Saudi Arabia started in the 1980s to make the desert bloom. This study examines whether or not the Saudi experiment in desert irrigation has been worthwhile in terms of cost and benefit. It concludes that the project was a waste of money and water on a grand scale.
The study will start by describing a brief history of the project. It will be followed by an estimate of the scheme's cost in terms of: a) money and, b) water. It will end with an analysis of the feasibility of Saudi quest for food self-sufficiency. The data are from Saudi Government and other official sources.
